©escdptive of 



airbanfte 



**i=lla0fta'0 (3oibcn Ueart'' 



Sbe falrbanlitf Commercial Clul) 

fori THOSE SECKINQ INFORIAATIOf* 

REQARDtNQ CONDITIONS IN 

INTERIOR ACASKA 

fAI»«ANK«. ACAtKA Ar«lt< 19 If 



I FAIRBANKS, $EPTBM 



Photo bv Johnson. Fairbanks 



Deecriptive of 



iTairbanhe 



**Hla0t^a'0 6ol^cn ibeart** 



PUBLISHED BY 

^be ifairbanl^e Commercial Club 

(I 

FOR THOSE SEEKING INFORMATON 

REGARDING CONDITIONS IN 

INTERIOR ALASKA 

FAIRBANKS, ALASKA APRIL, 1916 






FAIRBANKS COMMERCIAL CLUB 



A. J. NORDALE, President. 

J. A. CLARK, Vice President. 

WALLACE CATHCART, Secretary. 



Executive Board 



J. NORDALE. 
A. CLARK. 
C. KELLY. 
A. M'INTOSH. 
R. PEOPLES. 
J. RICKERT. 
M. SiVllTH. 



TRANSFERaeD FROM 
SEP 2 1916 



c 






% 



I 

NS 
N 



Fairbanks, ''Alaska's Golden Heart'' 

The story of the Banner Cold Camp ol Alaska, soon to become the 
metropolis of an Inland Lrnpire. 




SCK the aiinouncenifjit 
was made that congrei-'.s 
had decided to build a gov- 
ernment railroad from tide- 
water to the interior, and 
tlius make possible a fuller 
development of Alaska, the 
attention of thousands 
throughout the United States has been 
1 cused on the territory. Informati n 
in regard to its resour:es and climate 
is being sought and the profound igno- 
rance respecting the country that here- 
tofore has existed bids fair t) become 
a thing" of the past. In consequence 
of which a larger settlement of the ter- 
ritory is to be expected, for no cause 
has retarded migration to Alaska so 
much as has ignorance of the true con 
ditions pertaining here. 

Unfounded fears of the climate have 



in most cafes been suffic.ent to excuse 
more careful inquiry into the possibili- 
ties of the territory on the part of those 
looking for new fields of endeavor, and 
yet many thousands of these same ad- 
venturers have unhesitatingly gone to 
hunt for fortune under a foreign flag 
in the Canadian provinces of Alberta 
and Saskatchewan, where the climate 
is quite as rigorous as is that of Interi- 
or Alaska and the opportunities not 
nearly so good. The conception of 
Alaska entertained by most of them 
is srmewhat hazier than that they 
have of the South Sea islands,, and in 
many cases is limited by the belief 
that there are salmon fisheries and 
sealeries off the coast and a very few 
foolhardy miners hobnobbing with Es- 
kimos in the Interior. 

In view of the fact that in 1915 the 




RESIDENCE OF CLAUDE KELLY 



Five 




INTERIOR T. A. M'GOWAN'S RESIDENCE 



people of Alaska purchased from the 
merchants of the United States more 
than $28,000,000 worth of goods and 
sent to the United States $16,000,000 in 
gold and silver end nearly $39,000,000 
in merchandise this colossal benighted 
ness seems incredible. The fact that a 
governmental policy, which would have 
eradicated it many years ago, has not 
until recently been instituted furnishes 
a striking commentary on the different 
methods to induce settlement adopted 
by the Canadian and United States gov- 
ernments. 

The endeavor of this booklet is to 
correct some of the wrong impressions 
that exist in regard to conditions in 
the Interior of Alaska, and at the same 
time present information in detail con- 
cerning Fairbanks, the Golden Heart 
of Alaska. 

Located as a trading station in 1901, 
Fairbanks became a mining camp a 
year later when Felix Pedro discovered 
gold on a neighboring creek. The value 
of its gold production in 1905, ten 



times greater than that of a year before, 
reached $6,000,000. The output for the 
past thirteen years having totaled $66,- 
040,000, or nearly one-fourth of the entire 
mineral production of Alaska since 
the purchase of the territory from Rus- 
sia in 1867, its right to rank as one of 
the world's greatest gold producers 
has been undisputed. That this dis- 
tinction will be continuing has been 
made certain by the promise of reduced 
cost of operation, for when the railroad 
is completed thousands of acres of au- 
riferous gravels and scores of known 
ore-bearing ledges, of a grade too low 
to be economically worked under ex- 
isting conditions, in addition to the 
richer properties now being worked, 
will be made to give up their gold 
content. 

The railroad will bring about a con- 
dition to a certain extent paradoxical, 
for while Fairbanks will be made a 
greater mining camp it will at the same 
time be removed from the category of 
"camps" in the usually accepted sense 

Six 



of the word and assume its rank as a 
"town" of stability and assured per- 
manence. In fact there is every rea- 
son to suppose that Fairbanks will be 
as distinctively the metropolis of the 
Greater Alaska of the future as it 
has been for more than a decade the 
banner camp ot the bottled-up terri- 
tory. 

Because of its central location the 
town has become the distributing point 
for a great portion of the interior coun- 
try. By catering to the smallest needs 
of the miners as they have become 
defined the local merchants have large- 
ly increased the scope of their busi- 
ness, so that now it is the common 
practice of men located hundreds of 
miles distant to send here for their 
outfits. Railroad connection with the 
coast will, of course, add largely co 
the town's facilities for handling this 
tributary trade and will undoubtedly 
result in Fairbanks becoming the Chi- 
cago of Alaska. 



Placer Gold Production. 

Although the first discovery of gold 
in Inland Alaska was made on the 
Tanana river by prospectors and traders 
shortly after the purchase, many years 
elapsed before the mineral lesources of 
this district attracted any particular at- 
tention. The discoveries in the Klon- 
dike region on the Canadian side in 
1896 stimulated the search for gold in 
adjacent districts, but the men who un- 
dertook the work of prospecting the 
valleys of streams tributary to the 
Tanana had only small supplies of food 
and were obliged to travel rapidly. Con- 
sequently they were able only to do 
supeificial prospecting. 

The establishment of the trading sta- 
tion at Fairbanks in 1901 materially 
lessened the ditficulties of the argo- 
nauts, and when Pedro made his dis- 
covery in July, 1902, the valleys of 
Fairbanks, Cleary and Pedro creeks were 
staked by the few prospectors in the 
district and became the first produc- 
tive areas. During the winter a stam- 




FRANK YOUNG'S LOG CABIN 



Seven 




INTERIOR MAYOR R. R. MYERS' RESIDENCE 



rede from Dawson ensued, but, bp- 
cause it had not yet been developed 
that the richest gravels were deeply 
buried beneath a thick barren over- 
burden, in contrast with the phenome- 
nally rich and comparatively accessi- 
ble placers of the Klondike region, it 
was an incident without appreciable 
results in the commercial advancement 
of the district. 

During the summer of 1903 develop- 
ment was slow, the output for the year 
reaching $40,000. Pedro creek producei 
5.20,000 of this amount and Cleary 
$14,500. Wolf. Chatham. Twin and 
Goldstream were the only other creeks 
worked. 

More extended work soon demon- 
strated that the comparatively .shallow 
grave's where the first discoveries had 
been made were of small extent, and the 
problem of mining the deeper frozen 
gravels wa.^ promptly coped with and 
solved. Powerful hoisting plants were 
installed and transportation facilities 
from the river to the mines were im- 



proved. Pack trails gave place lo 
wagon roads and later a narrow gaug^ 
railroad was built to serve most tf 
the producing creeks. 

In 1904 the output reached ?600 000. 
of which amount $250,000 was tak' n 
from Fairbanks creek and $150,000 
from Cleary. Ester creek was mined 
for the first time this year and pro- 
duced $1,000. 

The arrival of necessary machinery 
in 1S05 gave the first real stimulus 10 
operat 011s and Ihe output that year 
reached $6,000 000, Cleary producing 
$4 312,000 and T-airbanks creek $1,400,- 
000. Ester and Pedro each had $60.00l- 
to their credit and Goldstream $50,000. 

A year later Cleary produced the 
enormous sum cf $5,383,000. Ester $1.- 
200.000 and Fairbanks $1,500,000. Do:«o 
creek joined the ranks of the producei-s 
that year with an output of $500,000. 
The to'al production reached $9,050,300. 

In 1907 the Chatanika flats. Vau't 
creek and Little Eldorado were for the 
first time workeo extensively. Of the 

Eight 



total production of $8,010,000, deary 
creek's share was $3 000 000. This would 
have been largely increased had it not 
been that a disagreement as to wage.s 
led to a miners' strike. 

A long continued drouth retarded the 
work in 1908 bat the total output ex- 
ceeded that of the year before by more 
than a million dollars, being $9,203,000. 
This was Ester's banner year, the 
yield totaling two million and equallins: 
Cleary's. Engineer creek was worked 
for the first time extensively and pro- 
duced $250,000. Dome creek's output 
was $1,750,000. 

Goldstream's best year was in 1909. 
when it produced $1,488,000, being sur 
passed only by Ester with $1,659,000. 
Cleary for the first time fell from 
firet place, its production being $1 441,- 
000. Little Eldorado and Ready Bul- 
lion came to the front with outputs of 
$500,000 and $237,000, respectively. The 
t tal yield was $9,650,000. 

In 1910 the first considerable falling 
off in the placej' output occurred, the 
total production being $6,100,000, and. 
until 1915, a steady decline has to be 
noted. In 1911 the production was 
$4,500,000; in 1912 $4,150,000; in 1913 
$3,300,000 and in 1914 $2,500,000. Last 



year's output exceeded that cf the pre- 
vious year by $500,000, being $3,000,000. 

The figures given are those for the 
production of the creeks in the im- 
mediate Fairbanks district and do not 
include the output of other contigu- 
ous minins,- fields in the Tanana Val- 
ley. They are laken from the reports 
made by the United States Geological 
Survey, which are well known to be 
conservative in the extreme. From the 
same authority, in its report of pro- 
gress and investigations made in 1914, 
the following opinion in regard to the 
causes cf the decline in output is 
quoted: 

"The very marked decline in the 
gold-mining industry of the Fairbanks 
district is chargeable to the economic 
conditions and not to the exhaustion 
of the gold deposits. While it is true 
that the exploitation of bonanza placers 
in this field will soon be a thing of 
the past unless discoveries not now 
anticipated are made, yet large bodies 
of auriferous gravels remain, but only 
a small part of them can be profitably 
exploited under present operating costs. 
"With the rapid exhaustion of the easily 
accessib'e timber wood is increasing in 
cost. The operator who now works 






RESIDENCE OF R. N. HOYT 



Nine 




A CORNER OF FRAN 

on placers of lesser gold tenor than 
those handled by his predecessor of a 
few years ago is forced to pay two to 
three times as much for fuel. Opera- 
tors also report that during the last 
two years the cost of supplies has in- 
creased somewhat at Fairbanks. There- 
fore the average cost of everything nec- 
essary to gold mining except labor is 
greater now than in the past. Under 
these oonditions there is not much in- 
centive to embarh on new mining ven- 
tures. There 1.3 need, therefore, of 
cheaper fuel and cheaper transporta- 
tion, and these needs will be met by 
the proposed government railroad to 
Fairbanks. This railroad will lower 
the cost of freight, will make com- 
munication possible throughout the year, 
and will furnish cheaper fuel by bring- 
ing in the coal from the Nenana field. 
Under such conditions large placer 
mining operations will surely be under- 
taken and Fairbanks will maintain its 
position as an important placer camp." 



Lode Mining. 



Prospecting for quartz has been in 
progress for the past nine years, and 
during that time more than 2000 claims 
have been recorded. Probably not 



K R. CLARK'S YARD 

more than thirty of these are being ex- 
tensively prospected, as most of the lo- 
cators are awaiting the expected re- 
duction in operating expenses. Prac- 
tically all of the veins that are being 
developed are free milling gold lodes, 
as deposits of this or other metals 
requiring metallurgical treatment for 
extraction cannot be mined under ex- 
isting circumstances. During the past 
year, however, large deposits of anti- 
mony have been found and a quite con- 
siderable shipment was made to the 
United States vv^hich returned substan- 
tial profits. Tungsten ledges are also 
being worked this winter, from which 
much is hoped by the operators. A 
number of the quartz properties have 
been developed to the producing stage 
nnd maintain their own mills. More 
than a niilion dollars has been pro- 
duced from the quartz mines to date. 

The veins are being opened up by 
local men and capital and some have 
been made to pay from the start. Most 
of the prospects occur near the head 
of Fairbanks cr-^ek. on many of the head- 
water branches of Cleary, at the head 
of Dome creek, on Twin and Skoogey 
creeks, and in the vicinity of Ester 
Dome, in the extreme western part of 

Ten 



the district. \\'ith the lessening of 
the cost of transportation and fuel that 
will result from the building of the 
railroad it is expected a tremendous 
impetus will be given to the lode min- 
ing industry, and that the district will 
become as famous for its hard rock 
mines as it has been in the past for 
its placers. 



Agriculture. 



Mining is not the sole resource on 
which Fairbanks depends, for the Tan- 
ana Valley, in which it is centrally lo- 
cated, contains more than two million 
acres of agricultural lands. The lower 
part of this valley, from the Delta to 
the Yukon, is one of the most fertile 
tracts in Alaska and of its agricultural 
importance there is no qtiestion. While 
the district may not be expected to 
raise products that will be valuable 
for export, under present conditions, 
success enough has been attained by 
local farmers to demonstrate that they 



can grow grains aiid vegetables suffi- 
cient to the needs of the entire terri- 
tory. 

The success attending the work at 
the government experiment farm, lo- 
cated a few miles from town, indicates 
that oats, rye and barley can be suc- 
cessfully ripened, as well as certain 
varieties of wheat. 

Practically all kinds of vegetables are 
grown as prolifically as in the most 
favored of the states. While cattle 
raising has not been carried on to any 
great extent there is no doubt of its 
feasibility. Already the local dairy in- 
dustry has attained a healthy growth. 

Homesteads are still available within 
a few miles of the town. 

Town of Fairbanks. 

Preconceived notions of what consti- 
tute the prominent features of Alaskan 
towns must be discarded by those 
visiting Fairbanks for the first time. 
There is not a jrlacier worthy the name 




THE DUNHAM RESIDENCE 



Eleven 



within a hundred miles, but scenic beau- 
ties of equal atlracti n and much 
greater economic value are Avrapped in 
the verdure clad rolling hills that par- 
tially encircle the town. Not a totem 
pole could be unearthed by the most 
enthusiastic archaeologist, but enough 
telephone, electric light and telegraph 
poles are in evidence to make amends, 
in the opinion of the more matter-of- 
fact, for this defection. Eskimos are 
never seen except on the screen at the 
picture shows and fewer Indians visit 
here than Is the case in almost any 
of the Western towns in the States. 
In fact, first sight and more extended 
acquaintance compel the impression that 
Fairbanks is a busy industrial center, 
in the making of which none but mo- 
dern business methods have been em- 
ployed. 

A very large percentage of the resi- 
dents own their own homes, among 
these being many large frame build- 
ings handsomely constructed and ele- 
gantly furnished, practically all of them 
being electric lighted and many of them 
steam heated. Much local pride is ex- 
pressed in the beautiful gardens that 
are the constant wonder of visitors, 
and the streets, vhith are being bettered 
every year, are a credit to the town. 
For the past several years Arbor Day 
has been observed and hundreds of 
birch and poplar trees now add greatly 
to the appearance of the town. 

Located on the south bank of the 
Chena river, twelve miles above the 
confluence of the latter with the Tan- 
ana river, Fairbanks occupies a most 



desirab'.e site. Skirting a horseshoe 
bend of the river, at this point about 
300 feet in width, the main street, or 
First avenue, is solidly built up with 
business houses and residences for a 
distance of more than a mile. Well 
constructed docks occupy the central 
portion of the waterfront, affording 
during the reason of navigation a 
scene of much business activity. On 
the north side of the river, reached by 
a bridge. Garden Isld^nd and Grae'^l 
are located, the former being the site 
of many large warehouses and the ter- 
minal yards of the Tanana Valley rail- 
road. Back of these villages a seri. s 
of timbered bills present a charming 
picture. To the south flats extend 
beyond the Tanana river f r miles, af- 
fording a beautiful view of the Cathedral 
mountains and Alaskan range. The 
town limits, bounded on the North and 
East by the Chena river, extend to the 
South as far as Twelfth avenue, more 
than thirty streets, well built up, being 
included in the municipality. 

The town has been incorporated for 
a dozen years and is governed by a 
common council of seven members, aa- 
nually elected in the month of April. 
While no recent government census t&- 
ports are available its population is 
given in Polk's directory for 1915 at 
3500. Its finances are derived from 
the federal licenses imposed on busi- 
ness hooises, all of which accrue to 
the municipality; from local taxation 
of real and personal property and from 
the income from the municipal court. 
These have proved sufficient to main- 




HARBOR AT FAIRBANKS. 



Twelve 




JUST KIDS AT A PARTY 



tain, in a thoroughly eflScient manner 
the public schools, fire and police de- 
partments and to keep in a state ot 
good repair its very excellent street 
system, and the town is now clear of 
indebtedness. 

Public Utilities. 

Few towns of the size of Fairbanks 
are so well lighted, electric light fur- 
nished by a very efficient plant main- 
tained by the Northern Commercial 
company being used on the streets 
and in practically all of the busineps 
houses and residences. Many of the 
industries of the town are furnished 
with power from this plant and a sys- 
tem of pumps supplying a standing 
pressure adequate to all the uses of 
the fire department is maintained. Steam 
heat is also furnished by the company 
for many of the places of business, 
while others have installed plants of 
their own. Naturally the general use 
of electric light and steam hear in 
The busmess district tends to very con- 
siderably reduce the fire risk, and the 
losses, since the big fire of May 22, 
1906, when the town was in its em- 
Thirteen 



bryonic stage, have been remarkably 
small. 

Good water is easily available, aa^ 
many wells, averaging about 30 feet 
in depth, have been sunk. The North- 
ern Commercial company serves raodt 
of the business places and residence?* 
from a large well from which a nevexr 
ending supply is pumped to practically- 
all parts of the town, while olhcrs 
are supplied by dealers who make daUy 
deliveries. 

The municipal fire department fss 
extremely capable and thoroughly welS 
equipped with modern appliances. For 
the past ten years it has demonstrated' 
that only extraoidinary circumstances 
could result in a repetition of the big- 
fire of 1906, as in many cases fire?^ 
originating in the center of the larger 
blocks have been confined to the prem- 
ises in which they had their inception. 
Water is forced through the mains by 
a high pressure system, a full head 
of steam being maintained on the pumps 
at all times, and the plant has a ca- 
pacity of fifteen 2% inch streams at 
one time. Fire hydrants are so dis- 
tributed as to make possible the con- 



centration of at least a dozen streams 
on any part of the business district. 
In addition to hose cart and sled drawn 
by capable teams the department is 
equipped with a modern chemical en- 
gine, which has proved particularly effi- 
cient in coping with fires in their in- 
cipiency. 

In addition to the municipal fire de- 
partment the Northern Commercial 
company maintains a volunteer fire bri- 
gade, which has on many occasions 
demonstrated that it is thoroughly cap- 
able. So much additional hose and 
equipment is carried by this auxiliary 
that no danger exists of shortage in 
this particular. 

The Fairbanks Telephone company 
operates a very ccmplete telephone 
service in town and its long distance 
lines extend to all of the principal 
creeks where mining operations art' 
conducted and to the new diggings in 
the Tolovana di.'^trict. The offices of 
the company are open day and night, 
the telephone lines being used as a 
fire alarm system which has proved 
very efficient. 

Telegraphic connection is had with 
the outside world over the government 
lines to Valdez and thence over the 



United States cable to Seattle. Every 
town of importance is in touch with 
Fairbanks, either by means of the land 
wires or the wireless system, a large 
radio having been in operation hero for 
more than six years. The sei'vice at 
The present time is in the hands of the 
United States Signal corps, small de- 
tachments of which are located along 
the routes taken by the land wires, 
and it is extremely efficient. 

Churches. 

To those contemplating a change of 
residence the matter of church and 
school advantages is one to be care- 
fully investigated. Especially is this 
so in the case of the man of family. 
Fairbanks is well endowed in both 
particulars. 

Five of the principal religious de- 
nominations are represented, each with 
its own place of worship, and ihe 
church is at all times a prominent 
factor in the town's activities. Bible 
study, and similar classes usually aux- 
iliary to church work, are held by the 
several denominations. 

St. Matthew's, the Episcopal church, 
occupies a pretty structure on First 




SOME PANSY BEDS 



Fourteen 



avenue, facing the river. Rev. H. H 
Lumpkin is the pastor in charge. Sun- 
day services: Holy Communion, 7:30 
a. m. ; morning service 11; evening ser- 
vice 8. Sunday school 12:15 p. m. 

The Church of the Immaculate Con- 
ception, Roman Catholic, situated on 
Garden Island, is housed in a beauti- 
ful edifice facing the center . of town. 
Re\ . Francis Monroe, S. J., is in 
charge. Sunday services: Holy Mass, 
8 and 10 a. m. ; Sunday school 2:30: 
Benediction 7:30 p. m. Missions in con- 
nection with the church are conducted 
at Chena, and on Cleary, Fairbanks 
and Coldstream creeks. 

The Presbyterian church, of which 
Rev. G. G. Bruce is the pastor, is 
housed in an imposing building at Cush- 
man and Seventh avenue. Sunday ser- 
vices are at 11 a. m. and 8:30 p. m., 
with Sunday school at 2:30 p. m. 

St. James Methodist Episcopal church 
Is located on Third avenue, between 
Turner and Cushman streets, and is in 
charge of Rev. J. J. Patton. Sunday ser- 
vices: Morning 11; evening 8; Sunday 
school 12:15 p. m. 

The First Church of Christ Scientist 
occupies a building at Seventh and Bar- 
nette streets. Sunday services are held 
at 2 p. m., with Sunday school at 
1 p. m. Services are alsoi held on Wed- 
nesday evenings at 8:15. 

In connection with the Roman Caitho- 
lic church a very completely equipped 
and commodious hospital is maintained. 
Thoroughly modern in every respect 
it has been of great service to the 
community. The building is a large 
one, pleasantly situated facing the town 
and river, on Garden Island, and its 
dooirs have ever been open for the alle- 
viation of suffering. Neither creed. 
color, nor condition of life presents any 
bar to admittance to this truly worthy 
institution. 

Public Schools. 

Fairbanks has good reason to be 
proud of its schools, as they bring edu- 
cational facilities within reach of the 
youth of the town far beyond those 
Fifteen 




A NOOK IN THE WOODS 

usually to be found in localities so 
far removed from the more pbpulous 
districts. 

The following data in regard to the 
schools has been contributed by Mrs. 
Mary H. Zimmerman, clerk of the 
school board: 

The Fairbanks schools are main- 
tained by annual appropriations of 
from $17,000 to |20,000, granted by the 
city council. Their administration is 
centered in a board of three members, 
a director, a clerk and a treasurer, ad- 
vised by Mr. F. X. Karrer, the super- 
intendent, a normal, university and 
commercial school graduate having man- 
ual school experience. 

The building is a two-story structure 
well located on a desirable site and 
equipped with fire escapes, electric 
lighted and steam heated, which was 
erected at a cost of about $40 000. This 
accommodates both the grade and high 
school, enrolling about 200 pupils regu- 



lar in attendance throughout a school 
year of nine months, and is comfortable 
even in the coldest weather. 

The laboratory includes not only 
splendid physics equipment but also 
geological specimens and maps togeth- 
er with zoology specimens; atso a mani- 
kin, skeleton, suspension globe, baro- 
graph, compound microscope, reflecto- 
Bcope and microscopic slides. These 
latter cover anatomical, physiological, 
and botanical subjects, while the re- 
flectoscope is equipped for projecting 
lantern slides, opaque and microscopic 
subjects. Much of the equipment is 
used in both grade and high school 
work. 

A piano and Victrola are used through 
out the school. The library is being 
augmented as fast as circumstances 
permit and contains about 300 titles 
for reference. Text books and many 
supplies are furnished free. Sanitary 
drinking fountains, soap and towels 
prevent possible contagion. An electric 
clock, with room gongs, facilitates a 
partial departmental system. 

The course of study of the full grade 
school, under five teachers, is as com- 
plete as any school on the Pacific 
coast. Specialists teach vocal music 
and the Palmer system of penmanship 
A misfit teacher emphasizes grade arith- 
anetic and spelling. A grade teacher 
must be at least a normal school grad- 
uate. The institutions represented a'-e 
Washington, Colorado, Iowa and Cali- 
fornia state normal schools, together 
with the University of Washington. 

The full four-year course of the high 
school, when supplemented by recom 
mendation, meets all entrance require- 
ments of Pacific coast universities. The 
curriculum is rendered as flexible as 
possible with a rather limited faculty 
of four and offers both required and 
optional subjects, the latter being 
given from yea.- to year to meet the 
request of the largest possible number 
of pupils and parents. All high scliool 
teachers are college or university grad- 
uates and, if possible, specialist? 
throughout their departments. The in- 



stitutions represented are the Universi- 
ties of Washington and California and 
Whitman and Wellesley colleges. 

Extra efforts are made to secure 
matured, experienced teachers possess- 
ing strong moral character, each of 
whom receives a salaiy of $175 per 
month. 

The playground, provided with swinges 
and boards, is enjoyed the greater por- 
tion of the year. 

The school population shows a per- 
manent and steady family growth in 
the heart of Alaska. 



Newspapers. 



Perhaps it may be said that no town 
in the world isi better served than Fair- 
banks with newspapers, when the cost 
of their production is taken into ac- 
count. The news of the world is re- 
ceived by residents here within a few 
hours of its origination, well edited pa- 
pers with good telegraphic service be- 
ing published on every day of the week. 

The Fairbanks Times Publishing com- 
pany, Inc., issues the Daily Times 
(morning) six days of the week and the 
Weekly Times on Mondays. 

The Tanana Publishing Company 
prints the daily evening paper, the 
News-Miner. 

The Alaska Citizen, a weekly publi 
cation appearing Mondays, is Issued 
by J. H. Caskey. 

The Free Press, weekly, is pub- 
lished by George H. Henry. 

The Alaskan Churchman is Issued 
quarterly in the interests of the Epis- 
copal church's work in Alaska. 

The Ursa Major, an attractive jour- 
nal of school happenings, is pubUshed 
annually by the students of the high 
school. 

Fraternal Organizations. 

Members of fraternal organizations 
coming to Fairbanks are more than 
likely to be greeted by brothers, for 
the secret and benevolent societies are 
well represented here. Five of the or- 
ganizations, Tanana Lodge No. 162 F. 

Sixteen 



& A. M., the Fralemal Order of Eagles, 
the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, 
the Loyal Order of Moose and the 
Harmonie Gesang-Verein, own their own 
homes, these being in each case com- 
modious buildings well adapted for the 
purpose. 

The Fraternal Order of Eagles, Fair- 
banks Aerie No. 1037, meets Saturdays 
in its own haJl. Since the founding of 
the order a large membership has been 
maintained, and at present it totals 
nearly 500. 

The Harmonie Gesang-Verein meet'^ 
Sundays in Harmonie Hall and takes 
a prominent part in the social doings 
of the town. 

The Independent Order of Odd Fel- 
lows, Fairbanks lodge No. 3, meets on 
Thursdays in Odd Fellows Hall. 

The Rebekahs are represented by 
Golden Lodge No 4, which meets twice 
a month in Odd Fellows' Hall. 

The Loyal Order of Moose, Fairbanks 
lodge No. 1392, meets once a week ^n 
Moose hall. This lodge, one of the 
youngest in town, already has a mem- 
bership of 700. 

Tanana lodge No. 162. F. & A. M. 
holds regular communications in Ma- 
sonic Temple on the second Wednes- 
days in the month. 

The Royal Arch Masons, Fairbanks 
Chapter No 1, hold regular convoca- 
ticns in the Temple on the second 
Mondays in the month. 

The Arctic Council No. 1 of Royal 
and Select Masters meets at Masonic 
Temple on the third Friday of the 
month. 

Stated conclaves of the Alaska Com.- 
mandery No. 1, Knights Templar, are 
helj on the third Tuesdays of the 
month in Masonic Temple. 

Sc fish Rite Masons have organized 
a club under the name of the "Farthest 
North Scottish Rite Club," but have no 
stated times for meeting. 

The members of the A. A. O. N. M. 
S. have an organization known as the 
"Shrine Club." its a:tivities beinq 
purely social. 

The Order of the Eastern Star, rep- 
Seventeen 



resented by Midnight Sun Chapter No. 
6, meets at Masonic Temple on tho 
second Fridays of the month. 

The Native Sons and Daughters of 
the Golden North, Lodge No. 1, a so- 
ciety eligible only to those bom in 
Alaska or the Yukon territory, meets 
twice a month. 

The Pioneers of Alaska, Fairbanks 
Igloo No. 4, eligible to those who were 
in Alaska or the Yukon territoiry prior 
to muary, 1901, meets twice a month 
in Eagle Hall. The membership, con- 
stantly growing, totals more than 800 

lioneer Women of Alaska, Igloo No. 
3, organized February 19, 1916. Eligible 
to all women coming to Alaska previous 
to January 1, 1901. A membership of 
more than one hundred was secured 
tofore the charter closed in April. This 
organizHtion meets on the first Saturday 
of each -nonth. 

Amusements. 

Business it by no means allowed to 
interfere to too great an extent with 
pleasure in the Golden Heart city, for 
entertainment is provided throughout 
the year in such variety that none 
escape its appeal. 

The Auditorium, Eagle Hall, the Roller 
Rink and the Orpheum are commodious 
halls at which quite pretentious theatri- 
cals can be presented and frequently 
during the winter season amateur per- 
formances are staged. For the past sev- 
eral years good stock companies from 
the Outside have played enjagements of 
several weeKs in the summer season. At 
the three first named halls many dances 
are held during the winter, the floors^ 
of hardwood, being of the very best. 
Seldom a week passes but one or more 
dances are held and all are well pat- 
ronized. Occasionally, also, concerts 
are given, the local talent being very 
capable. 

At the Orpheum two picture shows. 
are given every night of the week, 
most of the best releases in the States 
being available. The hall is constructed 
for the purpose and is thoroughly mod- 
em in every particular. 



Ice and roller skating are indulged 
in to a considerable extent, and curling, 
skiing, basketball and dog-team driving 
round out the list of winter sports. 

A large tract of the townsite, com- 
prising nearly sixty acres, has been set 
apart by the municipality for a park, in 
which is laid out a half-mile track, a fine 
baseball ground and a children's play- 
ground. Here athletic sports are held, as 
well as occasional horse race meetings, 
the proceeds from which are applied to 
the further betterment of the park. The 
children's playground is under the sup- 
ervision of the Woman's Civic club and 
has been most efficiently conducted 
since its opening last year. Several 
good baseball teams are annually or- 
ganized and weekly games attract many 
of the devotees of the national game 
to the park. 

Card and social clubs are numerous 
serving well their purpose of affording 
entertainment and gaiety during the 
winter months. The Tanana club, own- 



ing elegantly furnished quarters, with 
billiard rooms in connection, compares 
favorably with such organizations to 
be found in much larger towns in the 
States. 

Civic Organizations. 

The Fairbanks Commercial club, or 
ganized five years ago, is engaged in 
the work of promoting the interests of 
the town and the Tanana Valley, through 
publicity and the advocacy of such bet- 
terments as from time to time appear 
to be necessary and within reach. Its 
membership includes most of the busi- 
ness men and niany of the mining ope- 
rators on the adjoining creeks. No op- 
portunities for helping the community 
are overlooked and many advantages 
now enjoyed iire attributable to the 
club's enthusiastic and well-directed 
work. 

The Woman's Civic club was organ- 
ized a year ago and has been active 
in the performance of such civic duties 




ONE OF TANANA CLUB ROOMS. 



Eighteen 



as naturally come within the scope 
of such a body. The success of the 
children's playground movement, the 
passage of a satisfactory curfew ordi- 
nance and the capable administration 
of the public library are all to be cred- 
ited to the praiseworthy efforts of the 
oreaiiization. 

Judicial Headquarters. 

There are only four judicial divisions 
in Alaska, Fairbanks being the head- 
quarters of the Fourth. At present the 
courthouse, a large frame structure 
built in 1906, occupies half of the 
block bounded by Cushman, Second and 
Third avenues and Turner street; but 
the remainder of the block has been 
purchased by the government and a 
bill is pending in congress for the ap- 
propriation of $250,000 for the erection 
of a new federal building to house the 
courts and post oflQce. 

Officers of the division are a judge, 
marshal, district attorney and clerk of 
court, each with a corps of assistants. 
Terms of court are held almost con- 
tinucusly except during the short peri- 
ods when the judge is called to other 
I)arts of the division so remote from 
headquarters as to necessitate local 
terms. 

A very considerable expenditure of 
government funds occurs in Fairbanks 
as a consequence of the location ot 
court headquarters here, witnesses and 
jurors being called from great distances 
for attendance during the trial of the 
various cases on civil and criminal 
dockets. The annual disbursements from 
the marshal's oflfice for this purpose 
have averaged for the past three years 
$60,581.92, while the total disbursements 
for the year 1P14, the latest figures 
available, were 5240,290.67. These in- 
clude fees of witnesses and juiors, sal- 
aries of marshal, district attorney and 
assistants, fees of commissioners, bail- 
iffs, etc.. support of prisoners and mis- 
cellaneous expenses. 

Fairbanks Is also the headquarters 
of the Fairbanks Land District, the 
clerk of the court acting as registrar. 
Nineteen 



the marshal as receiver and a corps of 
assistants being employed. The land 
office was established in 1907 and af- 
fords to the intending settler every 
help and accommodation requisite in 
the taking up of homesteads. 

A commissioner for the precinct has 
his offices in the courthouse, his duties 
embracing those of probate judge, coro- 
ner, justice of the peace and recorder. 
From two to three assistants are em- 
ployed in this office. 

The municipal court is administered by 
the town magistrate, who also fills the 
office of town clerk. The police depart- 
ment consists only of a chief and one 
patrolman, but this has been proved 
to be entirely adequate to the need% 
of the town for the past several years, 
orderliness beiny one of its chief char- 
acteristics. 

On the subject of the administration 
of justice in Alaska, Judge W. W. 
Morrow, of the United States Circuit 
court for the Ninth Judicial district, 
which righted the wrongs perpetrated 
by the nctoricus "Spoilers" gang in 
Nome, in 1900, had an enlightening 
article in the January issue of the 
California Law Review. After telling 
the story of the misuse of the judicial 
power during the regime of Judge 
Noyes and the remedies applied by the 
court of appeals, Judge Morrow con- 
cludes his article as follows: 

"The supremacy of the law was es- 
tablished. The usual result followed, 
business and mining enterprise were 
restored to their proper channels and 
the community proceeded to take such 
advantage of the wonderful resources 
of the locality as to make it one oC 
the greatest mining camps in the 
world. Lawlessness has practically dis- 
appeared in Alaska and her territorial 
waters, and the restraints of civilized 
life have taken its place. 

"For the vast territory of Alaska as 
a whole, and for that part of it in- 
volved in this discussion in particular, 
we say the law is supreme, and is be- 
ing administered by its judiciary with 
as much wisdom and efficiency as in 



any other part of the United States. 
Congress has given its attention to the 
nee.ls of the territory; and through pro- 
visim of laws for the development of 
its resources, it is being made the 
home of an industrious, law-abidin ; 
and prosperous people." 

Mail Facilities. 

Fairbanks, being the center of popu- 
lation of Interior Alaska, is the hub 
Iron which practically all of the in- 
land post offices are supplied with 
mail during the winter season. The 
local post office is housed in a com- 
modious building, adequate to all pur- 
poses, until such time as the proposed 
federal building is erected. The receipts 
of the office f:r the fiscal year shovr 
an increase over the preceding year. 

Following are the services made from 
the Fairbanks office during the winter 
season, as authorized at this time: 

Fairbanks to Creek points, including 
Ester Siding, Happy, Engineer, Olnes, 
Berry, Fox, Meehan, Dome, Chatanika, 
Eld rado', Cleary and Chena; Daily. 

To Down River points, including 
Tolovana, Hot Springs, Tofty, Ram- 
part, Eureka, Tanana, Ruby. Nulato, 
St. Michael and Nome; Twice a week. 

Connections are made at Tanana for 
Kcyukuk river points, Hughes, Bettlep 
and Wiseman twice a month. 



To Livengcod, new Tolovana mining 
district; twice a month. 

To Circle, Miller House. Deadwood. 
Ft. Yukon, Eagle, Franklin, Chicken, 
Forty Mile, Y. T, Dawson, Y. T.: four 
times a month. 

To Cordova, and way points: Three 
times a week. 

Tanana Valley Railway. 

For the purpose of affording better 
transportation facilities the Tanana Val- 
ley railway was built in 190-5, twenty- 
five miles of construction being com- 
pleted at that time which brought Fair- 
banks in touch with Chena, to the 
southwest, and Gilmore and Pedro 
creeks to the north. In the summer 
of 1907 the road was extended over 
the hills from Gilmore to Chatanika. 
so that at the present time the road 
extends a distance of forty-five miles, 
serving most of the creeks of the 
district. The terminals are located 
on Garden island and trains are sched- 
uled to make daily round trips over the 
road winter and summer. 

Chena River Bridge. 

A source of much annoyance and 
large annual cost to the town has been 
the bridge spanning the Chena river 
and connecting the town proper witii 
Garden island. This is a wocden struc- 
ture that nearly every year is taken 




ON TAlN.ANA VALLEY RAILROAD. 



Twenty 




I»- 




jsr« » Xifc^ 




LAYING FOUNDATION STONE OF ALASKA AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. 
II for Creation of Which was Passed at Last Session of Congrats — Site Locst^d 
About Five Miles From Fairbanks, 
out by the run of ice at the time 



of the spring breakup and frequentlv 
during the period of high water in 
the summer. It may be roughly esti- 
mated that the bridge has necessitated 
to the town an annual expenditure of 
$5,000. This wooden structure is now 
to be replaced by one of steel, at 
present in oours.? of manufacture, which 
it is expected will be in place before 
the end of the summer. Tlie work of 
construction is to be done under the 
superintendence of the Alaska Road 
commission, the government bearing 
the expense. 

Roads and Trails. 

The building of roads and trails out- 
side of the town limits is, for the 
grenter part, in the hands of the 
Alaska R^ad commission, appointed by 
the government for the purpose of 
constructing military and post rcarls 
in the territory. The money for t.h<'- 
purpose is derived from an annual ap- 
propriation by cn^iess ■"nd 65 = er 
cent of the Alaska fund, the latter 
being revenue froTn business and trade 
1 venty-one 



licenses outside incorporated towns 
and certain taxation imposed on fish- 
ery products. The work done by this 
means has afforded good winter trails 
to most of the mining camps in the 
territory' and summer roads in the 
more populous district, such as the 
region contiguous to Fairbanks 

The most important work undertaken 
by the Road commission was the 
building of the read connecting Fair- 
banks with Valdez, on the coast, the 
former winter gateway to the I'lterior. 
Chitina, the inl;ind terminus of the 
Copper River & North Western rail- 
road, over which winter traffic ia 
now routed, is reached by a spur 
road from the "Valdez hi2:hway, the 
distance between this point and Fair- 
banks being 310 miles. It is an excel- 
lent winter road and, under favorable 
conditions, can be used by automobiles 
in the summer. Over this road a con- 
siderable amount of freight is hauled 
in the winter, but, because of the heavy 
cost of transportation by this route, 
it is naturally only such as is not 
pvailab'e during the season of naviga- 
tion. 



The Wells Fargo Express company 
has maintained an oflBce in Fairbanks 
for several years, the company acting 
as carrier, summer and winter, of pack- 
ages of value and smaller bulk than 
are usually intrusted to the freight 
carrying companies. Many of these 
small parcels also arrive in the sum- 
mer by parcels post, but at the pres- 
ent time none are carried by this means 
in the wintertime from the States, 
although parcels can be sent out from 
here by mails. The discrimination is 
made because all of the incoming 
stages bring in the full limit of mail 
allowed by the government contract, 
while those going out seldom nearly 
reach the limit. 

Business Houses. 

Fairbanks has two banks of excel- 
lent standing, one of them being a 
United States depository under govern- 
ment supervision with resources of over 
$750,000. Each pursues a liberal policy 
in the matter of loans and has been 
of much help toward the development 
of the country. 

There are nine hotels in the town, 
four of which may be rated as first 
class. These are steam heated and 
electric lighted and are furnished with 
the conveniences found in the better 
class of hotels in the States. The 
charges at all of them are reasonable 
when the excellence of the service and 
accommodatlona is considered. Seven 
restaurants vie v;ith each other in sup- 
plying the wants of the inner man. 
everything in the line of delicacies, 
home-grown and imported, being ob- 
tainable at prices commensurate with 
the cost of production. 

Following is a list of the places of 
business in Fairbanks, from which ii 
jnay be seen that few wants need go 
Tinsupplied locally: 

Architects 1; Assayers 3. 

Bakers 4; Banks 2; Barbers 9: Bath 
liouses 5; Billiard parlors 6: Black- 
«iraiths 5: Boat builders 2; Booksellers 



and stationery '3; Breweries 1; Brokers. 
4. 

Candy makers 1; Contractors, car- 
penters and builders 13; chiropodists 1; 
Chiropractors 2, Cigars a.nd tobacco 
dealers 8; Civil engineers 3; Clothiers, 
retail 4; Coffee Houses 3. 

Dairies 2; Dentists 3; Drugstores 2; 
Dry goods 4. 

Express delivery 4. 

Furnished rooms 7. 

ueneral merchandise 4; Greenhouses 
4; Grocers 13. 

Hardware 6; Hotels 9. 

Ice Dealers 2. 

Jewelers 3. 

Laundries, steam, 2; Lawyers 20; 
Libraries, circulating, 1; Libraries and 
reading rooms 2; Lumber manufactur- 
ers 2. 

Machinists 4; meat dealers 3; mes- 
senger companies 1; millinery 2; music 
dealers 2. 

News dealers 2; Newspapers, daily 2; 
Newspapers, weekly 4; Notaries public 
18; Nurses 3. 

Opticians 2. 

Paint stores 2; Photographers 2; 
Physicians 7; Printers, book and job 
3. 

Railroad companies 1. 

Real Estate 4; Restaurants 7. 

Saloons 12; Second hand goods 3; 
Shoemakers 2; Shoes, retail 5; Soda 
Fountains 2. 

Tailors 3; Telephone company 1; 
Tin, copper and sheet iron workers 3. 

Undertakers 1. 

Wood sawyers 5. 



GOLD was produced in Alaska in 1915 
to the value of sixteen million dollars. 
That of the gold state, California, with 
a population thirty-seven times as great, 
exceeded this in 1914 by only about 
five millions. The annual report of 
the Director of the Mint for 1915 says 
of the gold yield of the state of Cali- 
fornia: "With the exception of one year, 
1S83. the mined output of the state for 
1914 was higher than it has been since 
1864, fifty years ago." 



Twenty-two 





FAIRBANKS PUBLI C SCHOOL BUILDING 



Twenty-three 



The Government Railroad 

Connecting Interior Alaska With the Coast— What it Means to 

Fairbanks. 




VEN those prospectors 
who first found gold in 
the placers of Interior 
Alaska had to estimate the 
value of their discovery 
on the basis of transpor- 
tation charges. The cost 
of landing necessary sup- 
plies, and time consumed, were factors 
which determined in those days a.s 
they have done since whether "pay" 
had been found. The condition has 
continued to the present time, affect- 
ing the mining industry more acute- 
ly as the bonanza returns decreased 
and other costs, such as that for fuel, 
have increased. 

"Better Transportation Facilities" has 
been the keynote of every agitation to 
secure improved conditions in the ter- 
ritory, and it is a slogan which all who 
are acquainted with conditions will in- 
dorse. To those who live in the popu- 
lous districts in the United States its 
significance may not strike home, for 
an environment of competing railroads 
and excellent highways is likely to 
engender lack of interest in the ques- 
tion of transportation, or, at best, its 
consideration merely from the theoreti- 
cal standpoint. Alaskans, however, 
schooled through experience, base all 
their calculations on its existence as a 
condition — one from which relief is ab- 
solutely necessary if the territory i.s 
to achieve the development which its 
wealth in natural resources would ap- 
pear to warrant. 

The placer mining claims in the 
Fairbanks district lying idle at this 
time awaiting the coming of better 
transportation facilities and the result- 
ant cheapening of supplies, will ulti- 
mately produce millions of dollars. 



Many of them, even if worked under 
existing conditions, would probably 
show a balance on the right side of the 
ledger; but mining is an uncertain 
venture and the owners prefer to let 
the ground lie idle rather than take 
a chance of loss at the end of the sea- 
son. Many of these claims, if lo- 
cated in any of the western states, 
would be considered bonanzas. 

By the ordinary route freight reaches 
Fairbanks at the present time after an 
ocean voyage of 2700 miles and an 
upstream steamboat trip of 1200 miles, 
being usually from a month to six 
w^eeks in transit. When it is remem- 
bered that the vast bulk of the supplies 
and machinery used has to be import- 
ed it is not surprising that the cost 
of transportation is prohibitive to any 
but high grade mining. 

But the long sought relief from this 
condition is now in sight, the United 
States government having appropriated 
$35,000,000 for the construction of a 
railroad from Seward, on Resurrection 
Bay, to Fairbanks. 

This official recognition of Alaska's 
wealth in resources should be well con- 
sidered by those contemplating settle- 
ment in the territory. Its significance 
lies in the fact that, upon the report 
of a commission appointed by the presi- 
dent to investigate conditions, congress 
overcame inherent objections to the 
policy of governmental ownership of 
railroads and appropriated this vast 
sum in the firm belief that a good in- 
vestment was being made. 

After having in detail discussed the 
development of the country that would 
be sure to follow the construction of 
railroads the commission concluded its 
report by stating that it was "unani- 

Twenty-four 



mously of opinion that this develop- 
ment should be undertaken at once 
and prosecuted with vigor; that it 
can not be accomplished without pro- 
viding the railroads herein recommend- 
ed under some system which will in- 
sure low transportation charges and the 
consequent rapid settlement of this new 
land and the utilization of its great 
resources." 

In May, 1914, the Alaska Engineering 
commission was appointed to investi- 
gate and report upon the various rail- 
road routes, and about a year ago it 
was announi':ed that Seward had been 
selected as the coast terminus, and that 
the Alaska Northern Railroad, 72 miles 
in length, had been purchased and 
would be a part of the system. 
During last summer the work of mak- 
ing permanent surveys from the coast 
to the Tanana Valley was in progress 
and actual construction of the railroad 
from Anchorage, on Knik Arm, Cook 
Inlet, to the Matanuska coal fields was 
commenced. F'^airbanks has been defi- 
nitely decided upon as one of the ter- 
minal points for the railroad in the 
Interior and it is hoped that actual con- 
srruction work between here and Ne- 
nana, where the railroad will reach the 
Tanana river, will be commenced this 
year. In any case, it is definitely ex- 
pected that the entire road will be com- 
pleted in all its details early in 1918. 

The benefits accruing from the com- 
ing of the railroad to the Fairbanks 
district can hardly be overestimated. 
Cheaper freight rates, quicker service, 
more frequent piails and" improved fa- 
cilities for doing business with the 
supply houses are by no means all of 
the betterments involved. At present 
the local merchant has to order and 
store his supply for the greater part of 
the year at one time, for the overland 
freight rates are prohibitive. This means 
that he must pay high insurance and 
interest charges on an eight months' 
stock. He is unable to take advantage 
of market fluctuations, buying alway.s 
at about the same time of the year, 
and he cannot replace his "sh rts" 



until the reopening of navigation. 
These, with manj other difficulties, be- 
set the merchant, and naturally the 
consumer has to bear his share in them. 

But reduction in cost and time of 
transportation measures no more than 
half of the benefit that will be de- 
rived from the action of the govern- 
ment, for the building of the railroad 
will, practkaliy automatically, insure 
the opening to development of the coal 
fields so long withheld from public 
use. This is a matter of immense im- 
portance to the Fairbanks district, for 
it means that coal from the vast Ne- 
nana coal fields will be available at a 
third or less of the present cost of 
fuel. It was the withdrawal of these 
coal lands, necessitating the importation 
of Canadian coal at high cost, in con- 
junction with the government's policy 
of taxaticn rather than subsid'zation. 
that in the past has made private rail- 
road operation, on such small scale as 
it has been attempted in the territory, 
a doubtful venture. 

Careful computations of expected 
freight and passenger traffic have in- 
fluenced government officials to the 
belief, unhesitatingly expressed in their 
reports, that the government railroad 
will practically pay its way from the 
date of its con.pletion; and they are 
unanimously of the opinion that the 
increased business foUowiag the devel- 
opment of the territory served by it 
will make of ilie railroad a paying 
venture in the near future. Certain it 
is that it will prove to be the key nec- 
essary to open to the public use many 
natural storehouL.es of treasure in th-e 
Interior that have hitherto been inac- 
cessible. 



REINDEER were imported into Alaska 
from 1900 to 1902 to the extent of 
1280 head. At the end of 1914 the 
herds numbered 57,872. and in 1914 
over $94,000 was received from the 
sale of meat. It is estimated that there 
is sufficient grazing land in Alaska to 
care for 10.000 000 of these animals. 



"wenty-five 



Placer Mining 



The Leading Industry— By Senator C. P. Gaustad. 




HE Fairbanks district has 
already produced more 
than sixty-six millions in 
gold, but, in the opinion 
of eminent geologists, at 
least as much more will 
be mined when hydraulick- 
ing, dredging and other 
mechanical methods are rendered more 
feasible by better transportation and 
cheaper power. While discoveries of 
enormously rich ground are much less 
frequent than a few years a.go they do 
occur, and there still remain opportuni- 
ties for the prospector of limited meanr, 
to acquire fortune through a season''? 
work. 

Owing to the decline of our gold 
production many people contend that 
the placers of this region are exhaust- 
ed. A little Investigation into the real 
reason for this decline easily estab- 
lishes the fallacy of such coritention, 
and shows further that our workable 
placer deposits are practically inex- 
haustible, and the falling off in our 
gold output to be attributed to the ex 
cessive costs of operation which have 
prevailed since, and which are a di- 
rect inheritance from our "bonanza" 
days, when eflSciency and operating 
costs were negligible quantities, as 
the richness of the gravels made up 
for any deficiency of methods or man- 
agement. The miner simply couldn't 
lose. These "bonanzas" have been 
practically exhausted, but the costs are 
just as excessive as ever, and it is only 
reason of great improvement in 
methods and equipment that the pro- 
duction has not ceased altogether. Bear- 
ing in mind that, under the most favor- 
able prevailing conditions, it costs from 
$1.50 to $4 per cu. yd. to mine our 
gravel deposits, while the same char- 



acter of gravels are being profitably 
worked in other portions of the United 
States for a few cents per cubic yard, 
it is surprising that the production 
has been maintained at the present 
figure. 

The placer field of the region com- 
monly known as the Fairbanks district 
comprises an extensive area of aurife- 
rous gravel beds which offer an excep- 
tionally attractive field for placer ope- 
rations upon a large scale. The numer- 
ous creeks, gulches and river bars 
throughout this district have barely been 
scratched by the prospector, and every 
few months some of these patient, per- 
sistent pioneers are rewarded by dis- 
coveries yielding them comfortable for- 
tunes. The opportunities offered the 
placer prospector here are not to be 
equalled anywhere else in the world. 
The occurrence of gold is exceptionally 
common, in fact, almost every pan of 
gravel taken from any creek, gulch or 
river bar is sure to yield at least 
"colors." True, it usually requires much 
work and time to locate the channels 
where the precious metal is concentrat- 
ed to such an extent as to render the 
deposit workable, and the prospector 
needs to be endowed with plenty of 
courage and persistence and patience to 
achieve success. It is not diflQcult, how- 
ever, for a man who demonstrates hi? 
honesty and efficiency, to secure fi- 
nancial assistance for the development 
of promising prospects. 

To be enabled to pursue his investi- 
tigations in the most approved manner 
the prospector should be equipped with 
a small steam thawer, which, with all 
necessaiy appurtenances for sinking 
prospect holes, will cost in Fairbanks 
about $250. Provisions and clothing 
with cost from $25 and upward per 

Twenty-six 




MINING WITH INEXPENSIVE PLANT. 



man per month, according to individual 
tastes. This Includes only actual nec- 
essities consisting of good, substantial, 
wholesome foodstuffs. The country 
abounds in game and the rifle and gun 
can usually be depended upon to fur- 
nish meats. 

Gold having been discovered in pay- 
ing quantities, the next step in the 
work of the discoverer is the selec- 
tion of the method of mining best suited 
to the character of the deposit and the 
particular locality where it is situated. 
Where the depth to bedrock is less than 
twenty feet mining should be done by 
some open-cut method, either scraping 
with large steam scrapers, if the creek 
is flat, or by ground-sluicing or shovel- 
ing into sluices, if the grade and water 
is sufficient to carry off the over-bur- 
den. 

The cost of installing a modern scrap- 
ing plant in this district is approxi- 
mately $15,000. Such a plant, with 
efficient management, should handle 
ground from fifteen to eighteen feet 
Twenty-seven. 



deep at a cost of thirty cents per square 
foot of bedrock cleaned. Of course, 
the expense is largely dependent upon 
the cost of fuel where the mine is locat- 
ed, its accessibility to markets, and the 
freight rates from such supply points, 
but the above figure is near the aver- 
age cost of open-cut operations within 
thirty miles of Fairbanks. 

A detailed description of the im- 
proved methods of handling these shal- 
low diggings with steam scrapers, which 
has been evolved and perfected by the 
Tanana and Iditarod operator, would 
prove very interesting and instructive 
at this juncture, but the space allotted 
will permit of only a mere outline. 

When the block of ground to be 
worked has been selected, the moss and 
brush is first removed, preferably in 
the fall preceding the year of opera- 
tions. The following spring, as soon 
as weather conditions permit, the re- 
moval of the alluvial deposits commonly 
termed muck throughout Alaska and 
the Canadian Yukon, which overlay 



the giavel bed?, is commenced cither 
by scraping or, where the water supply 
is sufficient, by "piping." As soon as 
the pay strata of the gravel bed is 
reached, the same is scraped into the 
sluices with Bagley or slip scrapers. 
When bedrock is reached it is some- 
times necessary to clean same by hand 
on account of hard, creviced formation. 
The size of the "cut" — as the block of 
ground is called — varies from 30,000 to 
100, OOn squar > leet. As soon as the 
sluicing stage is readied in one such 
"cut" the preparation of another is 
commenced, so that operations are con- 
tinued uninterruptedly during the sum- 
mer months. 

As yet, the dredging method of work- 
ing gravel deposits has not been adopt- 
ed in this district, there being only one 
old fashioned, rebuilt machine cperated 
on Fairbanks creek. Being unsuited 
to the general conditions and character 
of the ground, slow progress is being- 
made. On Mammoth creek in the Cir- 
cle district where conditions similar to 



car pr V il la a su nme.- a uiod^'n 
d edge was installed which proyed 
highly efficient and economical. The 
field fcr dredging operations in the 
vicinity of Fail banks is practically un- 
limited, and, but f r the exorbitant 
cost of fupl for power, freight rates 
and instal ation, our output Irom this 
source w uld more than treble the 
total yield from other operations. 

The general character of most of the 
placer fields of this district being ex- 
ceedingly flat, the hydraulic method is 
seldom practical, and has been em- 
ployed only in rare instances and in a 
small way. 

The deeper gravel deposits, ranging 
in depth from twenty to two hundred 
and fiity feet to bedrock, are worked by 
drift mining. This method also has 
been developed by the Alaska miner 
to a degree of efficiency never before 
attained in any part of the world. Equip- 
ment has been devised and invented to 
overcome the difficulties of extraordi- 
Qary conditions, the high cost of labor 




DUMP TAKEN OUT IN WINTER. 



Twenty-eight 




SLUICING FROM SHAFT AND DUMP. 



and supplies, until many frozen gravel 
beds of this northern country are beiii-v 
profitably worked at the present time 
which were only a few years ago pro- 
nounced vahieless. It is largely tO' the 
ingenuity and resourcefulness of the 
Alaskan miner that the present credit- 
able output can be attributed. As 
strange as it may seem to those not 
familiar with mining methods, the frozen 
condition of the ground has proven a 
benefit instead of a detriment to drift 
mining operations, as the miner is 
enabled toi remove large blocks of ground 
without the semblance of timbers in 
the drifts, timbering only being required 
in the shafts and tunnels containing 
tracks. Of course, the strata of th^ 
gravel bed which contains the "pay' 
lying close to bedrock together with 
a foot, more or less, of the latter, must 
be thawed by steam, and where wood 
costs from ten to twenty dollars per 
cord — each cord having an average effi- 
ciency of only 175 sq. ft. of bedrock — 
the frost is responsible for a consider- 



able addition to the co3t of operations, 
but in frozen ground the cperator can. 
employ large crews with a minimum 
expense for "dead w:rk" of opening up. 
and preparing ground for drifting. 

The method usually adopted in drift- 
ing ground is fs follows: After pros- 
pect holes have been sunk and the pay 
streak located and determined, a one- 
compartment working shaft 7x7 in the 
clear. located as near the center of 
the paystreak as possible, is sunk about 
ten feet into the bedrock. The bot- 
tom of the shaft is enlarged in orde'^ 
to afford more room for dumping into 
the bucket, and a station is cut into 
the side wall for a sump hole and the 
installation of a pump for removing 
seepage water. Then two main tun- 
nels are started lengthwise of the "pay- 
streak," and .=iometimes one or two 
additional tunnels are run crosswise 
in order to afford m^re working faces. 
The two main tunnels are usually car- 
ried for a distance of two hundred feet 
from the shaft an>d then intersected 



Twenty-nine 



with crosscuts to the edge of the pay- 
streaks. T<Yom these crosscuts the re- 
moval of tho pay dirt is commenced 
by the faces or breasts being carried 
forward to the shaft. In order to pre- 
vent caving it is sometimes necessary 
t3 leave small pillars, but such caving 
usually occurs so far behind the faces 
or breasts as to cause no inconveni- 
t-nce. The dirt is then conveyed in 
wheelbarrows to the main tunnels 
where it is in turn dumped into cars 
and hauled to the shaft where it is 
transferred to the bucket which is 
taken by a "self-dumper" — an ingenious 
contrivance invented in Alaska — which 
dumps into a large "dumpbox" at 
the head of the sluices. The gold is 
collected by ordinary pole riffles, no 
other gold saving contrivances being em- 
ployed until very recently, when an 
exhaustive investigation of the tail- 
ings throughout the district demonstrat- 
ed that nearly twenty per cent of the 
values were being lost. 
The cost of an up-to-date plant re- 



quired for a drift mine employing fl^y 
men. is approximately twelve thousand 
dollars and the total daily operating 
cost six hundred dollars. The gravel 
output will ordinarily run alK)ut thirty 
square feet of bedrock for each pick 
and shovel man actually employed in 
taking out dirt. It requires at least 
forty per cent of such crew for engi- 
neers, bosses, sluice men, blacksmiths, 
and "pointmen," so that only a little 
more than one half of a crew are 
"muckers" or actual producers. Of 
course, there are instances where the 
efficiency per man is greater, and other 
instances where the cost of operationr 
are less, but the above figures are 
generally correct. 

Cheap power is the one essential 
requirement for the mining of low grade 
gravels of which we have inexhaustible 
reserves. Therefore, the completion of 
the government railway from tidewater 
to Fairbanks, connecting us with coal 
fields too far distant to allow its pro- 
duct to be transported hither by either 




SLUICING DIRECT FROM SHAFT. 



Thirty 



teams or gasoline trucks, but easily 
ac'.essible by rail, will produce a com 
plfte transformation in our mining 
methods. It will also facilitate the 
introduction of the latest improved min- 
ing machinery for the handling of grav- 



els on a large scale. Prospecting being 
thus encouraged, will result in devel- 
oping one of the most wonderful min- 
ing districts in the West and making 
productive the greatest known area of 
auriferous gravel deposits in the world. 





CPENCUT WORK WITH SCRAPERS. 



Tbirty-one 



Quartz Mining 



By Leslie M. Drury, Mining Engineer and Assayer. 




HE government geologists 
who have investigated the 
Fairbanks district have 
agreed that it is one of 
great promise in its de- 
posits of gold-bearing 
quartz, and veteran pros- 
pectors who have gone 
over the ground employing other stand- 
ards of knowledge and experience have 
ag^ eed with them. Only a few years ago 
theory had to be depended on to in- 
spire faith in the district fiom the 
hard-rock standpoint, but since then 
the notable production of several prop- 
erties has brought conviction. Many 
now entertain the belief that the quartz 
ideposits of the district will eventually 
yield more than the placers of the 
stream beds, but all are agreed that 
this development must await the con- 
siilerable reduction of transportation 
and fuel costs. 

Th( known extent of the so-called 
quartz belt is about 30 miles long, ex- 
tending roughly in a line between 
lister Dome and Coffee Dome, both ol 
~which are centers of mineralization, 
and, with Pedro Dame in between, form 
the heads of most of the gold-bearing 
■creeks so far exploited. 

Around Ester Dome the prospecting 
done has been of a desultory character, 
supported by local capital only. At 
that, some notable deposits have been 
■discovered and so far developed that 
their merits are accepted as very prom- 
ising. The property known generally 
as the Hudson boasts a two-stamp Nis- 
sen mill, which, however, operated only 
long enough to show that the present 
method of mining was ruinous. A 
rather wide zone of brecciated schist, 
shot full of rich quartz stringers, seems 
to be the character of the deposit. An 



effort was made to supply the nect 
essary tonnage by mining the stringera 
alone, but time and low power costs 
will probably determine that the whole 
deposit will ha-v e to be mined as a 
large low grade proposition. Other 
promising ledges in the same vicinity 
are a rich narrow ledge at the head 
of Nugget creek, the Smith & McGlone 
ledge between St. Patrick and Eva. 
and, notably, the large, well-defined 
ledge of Tyndall & Finn's at the head 
of St. Patrick. That this latter prop- 
erty shows great promise is the uni- 
versal prophecy of competent mining 
men and it should eventually swell great- 
ly the output of the district. Whether 
this can be exploited successfully un- 
der present conditions remains to be 
seen. Many other good-looking pros- 
pects have been staked near Ester 
Dome, but space forbids mention of 
*he individual claims. 

Between Ester Dome and the head 
of Big Eldorado lies about eight miles 
of ridge that has as yet been practical- 
ly unprospected. Numerous gold-bear- 
ing creeks head in this ridge, however, 
and it should be a likely country for 
the prospector. 

At the head of Vault, Big Eldorado, 
Fox, Wildcat and Treasure creeks 
more prospecting has been done, with 
the result that not only gold-bearing 
ledges have been found, but also sev- 
eral good deposits of antimony, which 
were profitably worked last summer. 
The antimony property with the larg- 
est production up to date is owned by 
Roadruck & Vance, but others of equal 
promise have been opened up during 
the winter. Among the quartz prop- 
erties, the one controlled by Friedrichs 
and associates is the most extensive, 
but the main hope is a large low grade 

Thirty-two 



deposit that will have to wait for 
cheap power and capital for develop- 
ment into a dividend payer. Others 
at the head of Big Eldorado, and the 
Kinney properties at the head of Fox, 
will be worth a lot of development 
work some day when such work can 
be undertaken more cheaply. 

At the head of Dome creek the Spald- 
ing property has produced over $80,000. 
but is at a standstill at present, being 
up against the hard proposition of 
paying its own development charges. 
Wood delivered at this mine costs from 
$10 to $14 per cord in 16 foot lengths. 

Just over Pedro Dome are the News- 
boy mine, at the heads of Cleary and 
Eldorado; the Hidden Treasure, on El- 
dorado; the Martin Harrais and Rain- 
bow mines on Twin creek, and the Mc- 
Donough ledge on the ridge just below 
the main dome. The Newsboy has pro- 
duced over $100,000 but could not pay 
for its own development with wood at 
$13 per cord. It is essentially a larg*^ 
low-grade ledge that should some day 
be a mine with a large production. The 
McDonough ledge is also a large low- 
grade deposit, but it has never been 
developed to the producing stage be- 
cause of high mining costs. The Har 
rais ledge is a large promising ledge 
in quartz porphyry on Twin creek and 
is exceptionally well favored with wood 
on the claim and a choice millsite, 
but even the wood in sight would not 
carry the property for over a year at 
a producing stage. The Rainbow is a 
small but very well defined ledge with 
good values but so far has had to pay 
its own way or not go. Across the 
hill from these are several galena prop- 
erties that should be exploited under 
any kind of favorable conditions. Sixty 
per cent galena carrying up to 100 
ounces of silver should not go begging 
in any man's country. Freight rates 
of unattainable heights have been the 
Nemesis of such deposits in this dis- 
trict. 

On the Cleary side of the ridge we 
can point with pride to a property 
that has made good despite $14 per cord 





VEIN OF HIGH GRADE IN RHOADS- 
HALL MINE. 

for wood. This property, the Rhoads- 
Hall mine on Bedrock creek, has paid 
its own way from the start, money for 
its reduction plant being furnished 
from mill runs in customs mills. This 
was only possible because of the abili- 
ty of the owners and the high grade 
of the rock. Even at that, the proper- 
ty's upper levels are worked out and 
a large known tonnage of ore in the 
lower levels is waiting for cheaper 
power to combat both increased min- 
ing and pumping expenses. It is nota- 
ble that the b.ink balance of this 
property is well on the right side but 
the property is now shut down and the 
district deprived of a large pay-roll. 

The Tolovana mine, on Willow creek, 
also has a reduction plant of its own 
but so far has not paid for its d'^veP;p- 
ment work. With cheaper power ob 
tainable and a large tonnage thus made 
available, this property should again 
be on its feet. 



Thirty-three 



From these properties to Coffee 
Dome, down Fairbanks creek, lie a score 
or more of promising properties that 
are either waiting for the opportunity 
to open up large so-called low grade 
ledges, or are trying to keep going by 
shipping the highest grade ore to cus- 
toms mills. The Rexa.ll, on Wolf 
creek, boasts a large ledge that many 
competent miners aver can be made 
to pay a profit, while near by, laymen 
are taking out a few tons of high 
grade a month out of the Homestake 
and milling it in the Rexall mill. 

Two customs mills are now operating 
on B'airbanks creek and are buying wood 
for $14 per cord. These are the Heilig 
mill and the Gilmore mill, both of 15 
to 20 tons capacity. These draw ore 
from Foss & Farvean, lessees on the 
McDonough ledge at the head of the 
creek; the McCarty property, the Kellen 
property, the Mizpah mine, Nars <fe 
Gibbs, Gilmore-Stevens, the Cook-Lund- 
blad, the Teddy R. and several others. 
So far it has been impossible to fur- 
nish tonnage, of a grade of ore that 
would pay expenses, to keep both going 
steadily but it is not anticipated that 
this condition will continue. There are 
several good ledges that could supply 
either mill, or both, but the result would 
be disastrous at present. 

At the head of Moose pup, on Fair- 
banks creek, is the well known prop- 
erty belonging to Crites & Feldman. 
The reduction plant consists of a five- 
stamp mill, and, except for the defunct 
Newsboy Mining company, is the only 
property to boast of a compressor and 



drills. The dreaded wood bill has pre- 
vented other properties from installing 
such an equipment despite the immense 
advantage of the same. In fact, at 
this property, it is doubtful if the good 
ore being milled would show a working 
profit without taking every advantage, 
considering the serious fuel question. 
Wood has to be hauled over one high 
hill, and up Moose Pup, making it a 
very expensive fuel. 

On Fish creek, a gold-bearing ledge 
with a workable percentage of bismuth, 
is now lying idle while George Pei- 
rault has recently completed five miles 
of road at his own expense over which 
to freight in a small three-stamp mill 
to develop his prospect. Wood is fairly 
plentiful over there as yet. 

A commercial deposit of tungsten, 
the ore being scheelite, has lately been 
developed at the head of Gilmore, and 
comparatively simple metallurgical 
treatment of that ore, together with its 
high value, should enable the owners 
to operate with profit. 

No other district is any more favored 
with variety and commercial quantity 
of minerals than the Fairbanks dis- 
trict, and the development of a cheap 
source of power and transportation is 
eagerly awaited by scores of property 
owners whose operations have been so 
heavily handicapped by present condi- 
tions. It is believed confidently that 
the quartz owners will come into their 
own when the opening of the ooal 
fields and the coming of the railroad 
.'-hall have supplied this need. 



Thirty-four 



Farming and Agriculture 



Government Experts Predict Great Future for Dairy and Stock 

Stock Raising 




HE work undertaken by 
the United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture has 
been so thorough and effi- 
ciently conducted that its 
published reports pertain- 
ing to the business of 
farming are unhesitating- 
ly accepted as the most reliable to be 
had. Few farmere would contemplate 
moving to a new section, especially 
if it were one in which agriculture 
was in its earlier stages, without first 
consulting the available data published 
by the government in regard to its 
general characteristics. Therefore, as 
restricted space in this booklet permits 
only reference in general terms to the 
agricultural activities of the district, it 



is deemed advisable to confine this 
largely to the opinions of these official 
experts; and those who are interested 
are advised to write to the department 
at Washington, for copies of the vari- 
ous works which deal more in detail 
with the subject, all of which are is;- 
sued free of cost. 

Two years ago, when the president 
was considering the possible routes 
for the construction of the railroad 
from the coast, the Department of Agri- 
culture was requested to appoint ex- 
perts to investigate as to the possi- 
bilities of agriculture in proximity to 
the routes suggested. Accordingly, in 
June, 1914, Messrs. Hugh H. Bennett 
and Thomas D. Rice, of the Bureau of 
Soils, came North and spent three 




ONE OF WILLIAM YOUNG'S OAT FIELDS. 



Thirty-five 




ERICKSON' 
months in the field. Their opinion of 
what they found in the Fairbanks dis- 
trict is partially summed up in the 
following paragraphs of their report, 
published last September: 

"T'le mst extensive agricultural ope- 
rations undertaken in Alaska are cen- 
tered about Fairbanks. A considerable 
number of homesteaders now in this 
section are chiefly or wholly busied 
with farming pursuits, and many others 
carry on some farming or gardening 
or raise hogs and poultry in conjunc- 
tion with their other interests. There 
are in the immediate vicinity of Fair- 
banks three dairy farms, a number of 
large market-gaiden farms, and farms 
producing grain, hay and potatoes, a? 
weU as numerous small gardens. On 
the slopes, and to a lesser extent on 
the bottom lands of the streams along 
which the place? mining operations of 
the Fairbanks district are carried on. 
potatoes, a number of other vegetables, 
and grain for hay are produced in a 
considerable number of fields, ranging 



S FARM. 

in size from a fraction of an acre to 
10 acres or more. There are some 
farms in the region which comprise in 
the neighborhood of 50 acres of cultivat- 
ed land. It is believed that consider- 
ably more than a thousand acres of 
land are under cultivation in the Fair- 
banks district alone. Wild hay is cut 
throughout the Fairbanks section for use 
on the farm and for sale to owners of 
stock. All of these farm commodities 
find ready sale in the local markets 
at prices which have generally proved 
remunerative to the producer." 

"It is estimnied that in the neighbor- 
hood of 700 tons of potatoes were 
grown in the Fairbanks district this 
year (1914). It is claimed that enough 
hay (wild grass and grains cut green) 
was harvested this year to feed the 
stock of the entire region, althou.gh 
some oats and other feed were shipped 
in. With respect to fresh vegetables 
the district is easily self-sustaining. In 
addition, considerab'e milk, butter and 
eggs are locally produced. A number 



Thirty-six 



of ranchers and keepers of rcadh^ust 
raise poultry and boss, while chickens 
are quite commonly raised by those 
not otherwise identified with agricul- 
tural pursuits. There were this year, 
in the district, according to estimate. 
about 300 hogs and 40 head of dairy 
cattle." 

"That crops can be successfully pro- 
duced in the Yukon-Tanana region is 
an established lact. Corn cannot be 
matured here, it is true, nor apples, 
and other crops by nature unsuited to 
the climate, nor is it likely that such 
crops will ever be grown with much 
success, but it is a fact that a number 
of crops which stand in the first rank 
as food crops for both man and stock 
are actually being grown very success- 
fully. The principal crops of the region 
are potatoes, vegetables, grain (as yet 
grown chiefly for hay), and native hay. 
Successful results have been had with 
all of these, and, in addition, a number 
of varieties of grain have been ma- 
tured for seed and experimentally to 



determine the possibilities of the coun- 
try." 

"The fact that fine specimens of cat- 
tle and hogs are raised in the Yukon- 
Tanana country and that successful 
dairies are operated, coupled with the 
ease with which large quantities of 
native grass and grain hay, vetch, root 
crops and other forms of forage can 
be produced, removes any doubt as to 
the possibility of actually raising stock. 
Cattle and hogs can be raised on the 
products of the region, and the large 
extent of land adapted to the pruductijn 
of the necessary feed points to the pos- 
sibility of successfully establishing im- 
portant industries in the raising of 
stock or dairying or both. Dairying 
appears to be the most promising in- 
dustry, but there seems to be no doubt 
that sufficient meat for home consump- 
tion could be locally produced. The 
rigors of the svinter climate do not 
constitute so serious an obstacle to 
stock raising as might be supposed. 
In the warm barns, such as have been 




ON THE GOVERNMENT FARM. 



Thirty-seven 




SOME OF WM. 

constructed of spruce logs, well chinked 
with moss, stock seem to get aloner 
comfortably." 

"Notwithstanding the fact that the 
region is capable of producing much 
more beef than the present population 
requires — more than a vastly larger 
population would require — not enough 
is produced to supply more than a 
small fraction of the demand, and this 
is mostly pork and veal raised scatter- 
ingly by a few road house keepers, 
farmers and dairymen. Practically all 
of the cattle in the country are used 
for dairying purposes. While consid- 
erable milk and butter are produced, 
the output is but a comparatively un- 
important part of that used by the pres- 
ent population." 

"No information could be secured in 
regard to the raising of sheep and 



YOUNG'S PIGS. 

goats. It is possible that the heavily 
fleeced breeds would prove successful 
here. At least some experimental ef- 
fort should be devoted to the raising 
of these animals." 

"With cheaper and better transpor- 
tation facilities and larger market out- 
lets an increased number of home- 
steaders will take up lands, and it is 
believed the region will be brought 
gradually to a place of considerable 
farming importance. The most promis- 
ing line of agriculture seems to bo 
the production of hay, grain and roor 
crops as a basis for dairying and sto-ck 
raising." 

"The Fairbanks silt loam is the best 
all-around agricultural soil seen in the 
Interior of Alaska. It is well drained, 
yet retentive of moisture, shows only 
a moderate degree of acidity in either 




HINCKLEY'S DAIRY FARM. 



Thirty-eight 





OAT FIELD AT GOVERNMENT FARM. 



the surface soil or subsoil, is easy to 
cultivate, and is productive. It is said 
that even the freshly-exposed subsoil 
produces well, although in general farm 
practice fresh subsoil material is not 
considered as possessing the proper 
requirements for successful plant de- 
velopment." 

As the productivity of nearly all crops 
last year was greater by nearly fifty 
per cent than that of the year before, 



when Messrs. Bennett and Rico were 
here, it may be inferred that the in- 
dorsement accorded the district by 
these qualified experts is well founded. 
It has been estimated that the land 
planted to potatoes, cabbage, carrots, 
beets, turnips, parsnips and similar 
vegetables yielded in 1915 an average 
revenue of about $1000 per acre. Ap- 
proximately 40,000 bushels of potatoes 
were grown and about 110 tons of cab- 











AN AUTO LOAD OF HAY. 



Thirty-nine 





A BARNYA 

bage. The vegetables listed above, in 
100 pound lots, are sold at an average 
price of five cents per pound. Accord- 
ing to the testimony of forty-five bona 
fide ranchers the average cost of clear- 
ing land in the district is $126 per 
acre 

Practically all of the seeding for 
vegetables is done in the middle of 
May, while the harvesting of potatoes, 
carrots, turnips, etc., takes place about 
the middle of S-^ptember. Celery, rival- 
ing for crispness and flavor the famous 
Kalamazoo product, seeded March first 
is ready for the market June 15. the 
continuous daylight in May and June 
inducing remarkably rapid growth. To 
this unusual amount of sunlight is due 
in great measure the excellence of the 
vegetables. This is particularly the 
case with sugar beets, the government 
analyses showing that those grown here 
contain a larger percentage of sugar 
to the ton than is usual. 

As much as 600 bushels of potatoes 
have been grown to the acre, although 
the average crop could be more fairly 
stated at half that amount. Cabbage 
and cauliflower, and beets, turnips and 
rutabagas, yielded last year nearly fif 
teen tons to the acre, carrots about 
twelve tons and parsnips ten tons. 



RD CORNER. 

Minor products raised from seed arc 
Brussels sprouts, rhubarb, leek, garlic, 
Swiss chard, peas, beans, parsley, cher- 
val. sage, onions, mint, lettuce and 
radishes. 

The production of oat hay and vetch 
averages about three tons to the acre, 
valued at $50 per ton. Ripe oats have 
shown a very high average production, 
in some instances as much as 100 bush- 
els to the acre. They are valued at 
about $1.50 per bushel. Oats are plant- 
ed May 15 and harvested for hay 
August 10. Those ripened for thrashing 
are harvested September 1. 

Some of the most beautiful gardens 
are to be seen in Fairbanks, most of 
the residences having adjoining plots 
of ground made bright with a profu- 
sion of flowers during the summer 
months. In many instances, also, suf- 
ficient vegetables for table use are 
grown. 

Nasturtiums, pansies and poppies 
seem to flourish here as nowhere else, 
blossoming prrfusely until fall. Fre- 
quently the sides of houses are covered 
with beautiful masses of vines, heavily 
flowered nasturtiums or sweet peas. 
Among the other flowers seen in pro- 
fusion in yards and gardens are asters 
of all colors, white and pink daisies. 

Forty 



phlox, petunia, canary vine, verbena, 
forget-me-nots, China pink, snapdragon, 
marigold, pansy, lobelia, gypsophelia 
and candytuft. 

It is stated that there are 76 wild 
flowers native to the Fairbanks dis- 
trict, some of them being particularly 



beautiful. Almost before the snow has 
completely disappeared in the spring 
many of them put in an appearance 
and in a few weeks they are found in 
abundance. Notable among them are 
the iris, poppy, wild rose, bluebell and 
crocus. 



Climate and Health 




SK one hundred residents 
of Fairbanks their opinion 
of the climate the year 
round and you will most 
probably be told by sev- 
enty-five, at least, that 
it equals or excels the 
best they have experi- 
enced anywhere. The remaining twen- 
ty-five may nor be quite so en- 
thusiastic but it is doubtful if one of 
the hundred could be found to con- 
demn it. 

Cold days may be expected in Oc- 
tober and to continue as late as March, 
although frequently Autumn weather 
lasts until well along in December and 
the warmth of Spring is evident on 
many of the days of March. Decem- 
ber, January and February are the 
months in which the thermometer may 
be depended upon to be down well be- 
low zero, and occasionally very low 
temperatures prevail for periods of 
several weeks. To the town residents, 
and those whose occupations do not 
necessitate continuous stay outdoors, 
however, this cold weather brings nn 
discomforts. It is very seldom that 
even a breeze is noticeable when the 
thermometer registers as low as 10 
below zero', and a blizzard comparable 
with those commonly experienced in 
the northern tier of states is a, thing 
unknown. The notable absence of hu 
midity imparts a bracing quality to 
the atmosphere particularly conducive 
to good health, and it is probably dur- 
ing the coldest weather that the doc- 
tors find least work to do. 
Forty-one 



The summer — no sweeter was ever, 

The sunshiny woods all athrill; 
The greyling aleap in the river, 

The bighorn asleep on the hill. 

Only a skilled word-painter is compe- 
tent to adequately describe the glories 
of climate that make the period from 
mid-April to September an ideal sum- 
mer, the greater portion of it bright- 
ened by almost continuous sunlight. 
Suffice it to say that it is never too 
warm for entire comfort in spite of 
the fact that there are but very few 
cloudy days during this period. 

Comparisons of climate may be made 
from many angles, but the mortality 
records will always be tiecepted as the 
data furnishing the testimony least 
susceptible to impeachment. This acid 
test reveals that Fairbanks has better 
title to rank as a health resort than 
most of the places that are advertised 
as such, for during the past two years 
the death rate has been less than five 
to the thousand of population. 

In 1914, with a population of 3500, 
there were 16 natural deaths, including 
one infant, and two accidental deaths. 
In 1915 there were 15 natural deaths, 
including one infant, and two acci- 
dental deaths. During the same peri- 
od the birth rate was almost double 
the death rate, 29 children being born 
in 1914 and 28 in 1915. Comparisons 
with the mortality statistics of cities 
in the states that make much of their 
low death rate will reveal the fact that 
few of them can show a record half 
as good as that attributable to the 
excellent Fairbanks climate. 



Sports m Summer and Winter 




HE young Alaskan is a 
fine example of husky 
youth endowed plenteously 
with animal spirits. Heal- 
thy, and of lively tem- 
perajnent, his exuberant 
vitality finds a Ijogical 
form of expression in ath- 
letic games and sports, the opportuni- 
ties for which are practically unlimited 
in Fairbanks. The summer is ideal for 
baseball, track and field sports, tennis, 
motorboating and canoeing; while skat- 
ing curling, ski-ing and basketball 
roiund out a satisfactory winter program. 

Baseball 

The national pastime is as popular 



here as anywhere under the flag and 
eveiy season several good baseball 
teams are organized. These play at 
Exposition park, which has an excel- 
lent diamond, and frequently the large 
grandstand and bleachers are crowded 
to capacitj' with encouraging fans. 
Many games are played in the evening, 
nota.ble among them being the annual 
Midnight game on .June 21, when 
"Play Ball" is called a little before 12 
o'clock and the gaone throughout is 
played with satisfactory light condi- 
tions. 

Teams from Dawson, distant nearly 
a thousand miles, occasionally come to 
Fairbanks to engage in a series of 
games, and the soldiers from Ft. Gib- 




OPENING BASEBALL SEASON— AUTO PARADE. PUBLIC LIBRARY IN 

BACKGROUND. 

Forty-two 




TENNIS CLU 
bon, two hundred and seventy-five 
miles away, play here annually. 

The schoolboys have the use of the 
Park diamond and the lower grades 
have at least two organized teams, 
while the older boys, with the help 
of a few of the graduates, can put in 
the field two more. During the sea- 
son two or three regularly scheduled 
games are played each week. 



Athletic Sports 



Field and track sports are encour- 
aged at the public schools, meetings 
usually being held in the spring and 
fall at Exposition Park. These are 
conducted under the supervision of one 
of the members of the faculty and 
miost of the boys eagerly take up 
this form of recreation. 

On July Fourth many prizes are 
given for running, jumphig. bicycle 
riding and all the other events usually 
in evidence on such occasions, and 
the games are participated in by young- 
sters between the ages of seven and 
seventy. 
Forty-three 



B COURTS. 

Lawn Tennis 

The Fairbanks Lawn Tennis club, 
organized about four years ago, has 
an enthusiastic membership limited 
to forty and is the possessor of an 
excellent board court. Plans are un- 
der way for thf building of another 
court and, if this is done, the mem- 
bership limit that has been necessary 
in the past will be removed. Games 
are played at almost all hours of the 
twenty-four during the summertime, 
tihe season beginning in mid-April 
and continuing into September. Sev- 
eral tournaments are played, during 
which large and enthusiastic galleries 
are always in attendance. 

Cycling and Motoring 

In spite of the fact that there is not 
a very large mileage of good cycling 
roads in the neighborhood there arc 
quite a number of bicycles and motor- 
cycles used, while it Is probable that 
there is not a town in the countrj- 
where there are so many automobiles 
in proportion to the population. 




WHEELBARROW RACE 

Motorboating is a very popular sport 
in the summer and its field is unlim- 
ited. Scores of boats, ranging from 
canoes with overboard motors to hydro- 
planes boasting top-notch speed, are 
to be seen on the Chena river in front 
of town every evening and many de- 
lightful trips are possible. Every Sat- 
urday evening a number of laiunch 
partie'^ are organized for picnics or 
hunting and fishing excursions. 

A natatorium built a year ago is 
proving a source of attraction to youns: 
and old of both sexes. 

Trap shooting is indulged in by 
the shotgun enthusiasts at Exposition 
park and the practice thus obtained 
in the summer brings good results in 
the fall when the ducks and geese 
are flying. 

Curling and Skating 

The Fairbanks Curling club has been 
in existence for nearly a dozen years 
and no difficulty is ever experienced in 
filliiiq its membership limit of 40. 



ON FOURTH OF JULY. 

The club owns its own building, in 
which are housed two fine rinks and 
a comfortable room for spectators, and 
during the season the playing of tourna- 
ments tor handsome trophies is prac- 
tically continuous. Keen interest is 
taken in the game and every night 
a number of spectators is on hand to 
aid the players with encouragement, 
suggestions and advice. 

Skating is always popular and in 
the earlier part of the winter the 
neighboring sloughs are the scenes of 
merry parties. Later a large space on 
the river opposite town is cleared for 
the sport. 

A roller rink with an excellent floor 
affords opportunity for indoor skating 
throughout the year. 

Other Winter Sports 

Several very efficient basketball teams 
were organized during the past winter 
and a schedule of games was played 
at the Roller Rink. This is a game 

Forty-four 




CHARIOT RAC 

which in all probability will receive 
more encouragement in the future. 

Ski-ing- is becoming more popular and 
during the past winter it found many 
devotees. Splendid opportunities for 
its enjoyment are afforded in the neigh- 
boring country and a number of parties 
made up of the younger set were or- 
ganized. Snowshoeing as a sport is also 
becoming popular and gives promise of 
becoming more so in the future. 



E AT PARK. 

Dog team rides are an excellent sub- 
stitute for the buggy rides of the 
Outside and prove a never-failing in- 
ducement to the gentler sex. Last 
year a series of races was run here 
but Fairbanks has not yet taken the 
place it should as a dog-racing center. 
This is something, however, that lovers 
of the sport hope to see corrected with 
time. 



Forty-five 



Hunting and Fishing 



Interior Alaska a Sportsman's Paradise 




HE sportsman, hunting- 
with rifle, shotgun or 
camera, will find the re- 
gion of which Fairbanks 
is The hub entirely to his 
liking. The contour and 
clothing of the country 
are such, as are favored 
by the larger game animals, while at 
the same time they offer few impedi- 
ments to their stalking. For at least 
200 miles, in practically every direction 
from the town, series of small valleys 
occur, the slopes of which ai'e heavily 
wooded with spruce, birch, cottonwood 
and willow and carpeted with succu- 
lent mosses. They are such feeding 
grounds as are eagerly sought by 
moose, while Bruin lives contentedly 
on the inexhaustible supply of berries 
and the fish with which the streams 
abound. Above the timber line the 



reindeer moss supports uncountable 
herds of caribou, and in the still higher 
altitudes the white mountain sheep are 
to be found in quantities. 

The Alaska game laws permit the 
hunting in the Fairbanks district of 
moose caribou and sheep from August 
first to December tenth. Two moose, 
three caribou and three sheep may be 
killed within the limit Imposed by 
the law. No restrictions whatsoever 
apply to the killing of such animals 
as black, brown, glacier or grizzly bear, 
wolves, wolverines, squirrels or rab- 
bits. 

To the north of Fairbanks, for a dis- 
tance of approximately 30 miles, the 
creeks and valleys are extensively 
mined and the larger game animals 
are naturally seen less frequently than 
in the earlier days of the camp. Back 
of this region but a few miles, how- 




BACK FROM DUCK HUNTING. 



Forty-six 




ALMOST A LIMIT BAG— ST. JOSEPH' 

CHURCH IN 

ever, in the Beaver country and to the 
eastward, moose, caribou and bear are 
plentiful. Thi.s is an ideal country in 
which to hunt, the scenic attractions 
augmenting the pleasure of the chase. 
In this, as in all of the region contigu- 
ous to Fairbanks, ruffed grouse, pin- 
nated grouse and ptarmigan are found 
in considerable quantities. 

Along the Chena river and its forks 
moose and bears of various species 
are numerous, while the main ridges 
are. during several periods of the year, 
traversed by immense herds of cari- 
bou. This district is very easily 
reached in fall or winter, and during 
the summer the river route affords a 
delightful motorboat trip. Headquar- 
ters can, to advantage, be established 
at the Chena Hot Springs, a resort 
to which reference is made elsewhere 
ill this booklet, as this is in the center 
of the district best for hunting cari- 
bou, moose and bear. 

Than the Mount McKinley country 
Forty-seven 



S HOSPITAL AND ROMAN CATHOLIC 
BACKGROUND. 

there is no finer hunting ground on 
the American continent. The mountain, 
highest in the country, is so superb in 
its colossal proportions and the gran- 
deur of the surrounding scenery, as 
to be w'ell worth the overcoming of 
any diflBculties that accompany the trip 
to its base, and the sportsman will 
find in the foothills the larger species 
of grizzly, as well as black, brown and 
glacier bear, in addition to sheep, 
moose and caribou. Fairbanks is the 
logical point for outfitting for a trip 
to the mountain, which, situated near 
the headwaters of the Kantishna river, 
is a little more than 200 miles to the 
southwest, and all hunters who have 
visited the district have returned with 
extravagant praise for the game para- 
dise found. Everything necessary to 
a complete outfit may be obtained 
in Fairbanks and thoroughly competent 
guides are to be had. 

For mountain sheep hunting, than 
which to the true sportsman there is 



none more alluring, the mountainous 
country contiguous to the headwaters 
of the Wood, Tatlanika, Totatlanika 
and Nenana rivers is the most adjacent 
to Fairbanks. In the late fall this 
region can be very easily reached by 
an overland trail, the distances vary- 
ing from 65 to 85 miles, along which 
moose abound. Caribou, also, are to 
be found in numbers on the foothills, 
as well as bears, before the sheep coun- 
try is reached. 

To the southeast the district through 
which the Salciiaket river flows is nota- 
ble for the abundance cf game, and di- 
rectly south, toward the Cathedral 
mountains, the Delta and Little Delta 
rivers drain a country much frequented 
by hunters. 

Throughout the entire region sur- 
rounding Fairbanks sloughs and lakes 
are numerous, and these, together with 
the larger creeks and rivers, teem 
with waterfowl. Swans, geese, cranes 
and many varieties of ducks annually 
take up their abode and rear their 
families here, flying South only when 
winter has given definite notice of its 
approach. Large bags are frequently 
secured within a few miles of town. 

Wiiile reference has been made spe- 
cifically to the hunting districts at 
such distance from Fairbanks as would 
necessitate a trip of at least several 
days' duration, it is not to be inferred 
that big game is not to be found nearer 
to town. To the contrary it may be 
said that close observation leads to 
the belief that moose are becoming 
more plentiful in the near neighborhood, 
and it is a fact that many have in 
recent years been killed within ten 
miles of the town limits. Caribou 
have visited some of the adjoining 
creeks when mining operations were 
actually in full blast. Rabbits, a most 
useful food supply, are found in large 
numbers within a few minutes' walk 
of town. 

With reasonable laws for the protec- 
tion of the game being accorded proper 



observance there is little doubt that 
the Fairbanks district will continue 
for many years to be a favorite and 
prolific hunting ground, the splendor 
of the country and its bracing climate 
during the open season adding in great 
measure to the attractions of the sport. 

Fishing. 

The angler has to go but a verv short 
distance from cown to get good fish- 
ing, many of the disciples of Isaak 
Walton, in fact, being quite content 
with the sport they are able to get 
in the Chena river within the city 
limits. Further up the Chena, how- 
ever, excellent grayling fishing is to be 
had and good trout fishing is accessi- 
ble at no great distance. 

The Tanana river and all of its 
tributaries teem with fish, salmon of 
several varieties being particularly 
plentiful, while whitefish and trout 
are also numerous. Hundreds of tons 
of king, silver and dog salmon are 
taken and cured every season on the 
Tanana, many white men in addition 
to the Indians being employed in the 
industry. Ling cod, of excellent quali- 
ty, and large size, are taken by the 
fishermen in the early fall. In the 
larger lakes pickerel and white fish 
abound in great numbers. 




BIGHORN (AWAKE) ON THE HILL. 



Forty-eight 




cc 

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o 

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QC 
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Forty-nine 



Big Chena Hot Springs 



Highly Medicated Thermal Springs Similar to Those of Carlsbad. 




HEN the government rail- 
road has reached Fair- 
banks and made the dis- 
trict so much more ac- 
cessible in point of time 
and cost the Big Chena 
Hot Springs will undoubt- 
edly be the Mecca of thou- 
sands seeking health, for they have 
been proved beyond question to be 
curative to a remarkable extent in the 
treatment of rheumatism and kindred 
afflictions. The springs are located 
about sixty miles from Fairbanks and 
can be reached at all times of the year. 
In a small valley surrounded by high 
hills, with two picturesque creeks 
threading its course, the thermal 
springs boil from the earth in a spot 
on which Nature has lavished her 



graces with unsparing hand. Every 
species of tree, flora and vegetation 
native to the territory seems to ap- 
pear here to especially good advan- 
tage, and fish and game are abundant 
in the streams and surrounding hills. 

Of the highly medicated quality of 
the springs there is no question, and 
many who have sought relief from 
various ailments have returned well 
pleased with the results achieved. Hot 
mud baths, naturally heated, as well 
as hot or cold sulphur baths are 
used by the patients. The tempera- 
ture of the water is 162 degrees. 

To determine beyond question the 
characteristics of the water of these 
springs a quantity was submittf^d by 
Delegate James Wickersham to the 
department of agriculture for analysis. 




DAY'S BAG OF CARIBOU, BY PARTY OF SIX, AT HOT SPRINGS. 



Fifty 




MONUMENT CREEK, BIG CHENA 

HOT SPRINGS. 
The following letter Indicates the re- 
sult of the test: 

"Department of Agriculture. Office 
of the Secretary, Washington, D. C. 
June 3, 1912. 

"Hon. James Wickersham, House of 
Representatives, Washington, D. C. 

"Dear Sir: Replying to your inquiry 
in reference to Big Chena Hot Springs, 
analyses of which was made for you 



in the Bureau of Chemistry of this 
department, I beg to advise you that 
the records in the Bureau of Chemistry 
show this water to be different from 
any American hot springs which we 
have examined. The principal charac- 
teristic of the Big Chena Hot Springs 
is its contents of sulphate, chloride 
and bicarbonate of sodium. In gen- 
eral character it is somewhat like the 
Felsenquelle, one of the famous 
springs at Carlsbad in Bohemia. The 
percentage composition of the princi- 
pal salts in ■solution is somewhat 
similar. 
"Big Chena Springs Felsenquelle Springs 

13.6 Sodium Chloride IC..*? 

31.2 Sodium Sulphate 38.1 

35.6 Sodium Bicarbonate 29.5 

"The Felsenquelle is also a thermal 
spring. 

"Trusting the above information will 
be of service to you, I am. 

Very respectfully, 
JAMES WILSON, 

Secretary." 



Pifty-one 



What It Costs to Live Here 




P twenty-four persons 
ear-'iing similar wages resi- 
dent in any of the cities 
of the United States were 
asked how much per month 
it cost them to live it is 
probable two dozen widely 
divergent answers would 
be returned, for the lists of what each 
considered necessary would undoubted- 
ly vary considerably. Naturally the 
same condition exists in Fairbanks and 
it is accordingly difficult to state the 
living cost at anything like a specific 
figure with accuracy. 

Supply and demand exercise in Fair- 
banks to just the same degree as else- 
where an influence on prices, and, 
as in every other business center, com- 
petition acts as a stabilizer and guar- 
antees a fair level. 

A glance at the list of business 
houses in town, printed on another page, 
will show that there are enough firms 
engaged in the supply of all the staples 
that have to be imported to insure of 
competitive prices. These usually are 
proportionate with those prevailing in 
Pacific coast cities, with the freight 
and handling charges added. 

A single man, rooming at a hotel 
and taking his meals at restaurants, 
will find the expense of comfortable 
living, exclusive of clothing, about $75 
per month. Should he prefer a cabin, 
doing his own cooking, he could cut 
this expense to $40, or less if, as is 
usual, he had a partner. 



Man and wife, paying $15 rent for a 
house, can live very comfortably at 
an expense, clothing included, of $100 
per month. Many families do quite 
Avell on less than this but the figure 
is quoted as being a fair average. As 
most families own their own homes 
the rent cost is considerably reduced. 

Those who wish to practice rigid 
economy find many ways of cutting 
expense bills. In the summer there 
is a plentiful supply of berries of 
various kinds to be had for the pick- 
ing, salmon and greyling are easily 
caught in the river running through 
town, game of many kinds is avail- 
able in the fall and sufficient vegeta- 
bles can be grown in the garden with 
little trouble and expense. 

If any general rule had to be ap- 
plied to the cost of living here it might 
be said that the average married man 
engaged in an indoor occupation will 
spend on his household about two- 
thirds of his wages. As this may also 
fairly be stated to be the rule Out- 
side, the advantage of the Fairbanks 
location is apparent when it is con- 
sidered that the average Fairbanks wage 
for such work is $175 and that obtain- 
able in the States is only about $sn. 
The amount available for savings in 
Fairbanks would therefore be $58.33 
per month while Outside it would be 
only $26.66, and the Fairbanks man 
paying $116.66 per month would be 
living very much better than the man 
Outside paying $53.33. 



Fifty-two 



The Tourist's M 



ecca 



ALASKA— Beautiful, Wonderful, Colossal 




LASKA is a land of many 
attractions for the tourist, 
the ideal summer weather 
enhancing the fascination 
of its incomparable scen- 
ery. Misunderstanding in 
regard to the comfort and 
ease with which a tour 
of the territory may be made has been 
chiefly responsible in the past for its 
neglect at the hands of pleasure seek- 
ers, but as these misapprehensions are 
corrected more attention is being di- 
rected to the Northland and it bids 
fair to soon become the Mecca of Am- 
erican tourists. 

Travelers of experience who have 
visited most of the points of interest in 
both continents have been lavish in their 
praise of the Alaskan trip and e.'rnestly 
recommend it as more desirable than the 
majority of those more extensively ad- 
vertised. Barton Holmes, probably the 
most experienced lecturer on travel 
of modern times, says: "The Yosemite 
Valley is beautiful, the Yellowstone 
Park is wonderful, the Canyon of the 
Colorado is colossal, and Alaska is all 
of these." 

During the summer two routes are 
open to the tourist, each, however, cov- 
ering the same course. One is by way 
of Skagway and Dawson, down the 
Yukon river to its point of confluence 
with the Tanana, at Tanana, thence 
up the river to Fairbanks, and thence 
to St. Michael, from which point an 
ocean steamer is taken for an eight 
day voyage back to Seattle. The 
second route is by way of St. Michael, 
Nome being the point of entry to the 
territory and Skagway that at which 
the ocean boat is taken for Seattle. 

On both of these routes the cele- 
brated Inside Passage is taken. The 
Fifty-three 



distance between Seattle and Skagway 
is about one thousand miles, the great- 
er part of the steamer's course lying 
between the islands and the mainland 
through narrow channels smooth as 
the waters of a river and walled by 
lofty and picturesque montains. Many 
stops are made at towns, villages and 
camps and the traveler finds no excuse 
for lack of interest. 

From Skagway the trip is continued 
over the summit of White Pass by 
rail to White Horse, the scenery en 
route being such as to inspire awe 
from its grandeur. The trail of the 
Argonauts of '97 and '98 who stam- 
peded to Dawson in the world's great- 
est gold rush is closely followed and 
many points that have become historic 
are seen at close range. Before White 
Horse, the head of navigation on the 
Upper Yukon, is reached. Miles Canyon 
and the White Horse rapids, famous 
in Klondike memory, are passed. 

In the downstream trip of 460 miles 
from WTiite Horse to Dawson especial 
points of interest are the Five Fingers 
and the Rink Rapids, but the glorious, 
ever-changing scenery at no time leaves 
anything to be desired by lovers of 
the beautiful. At Dawson an oppor- 
tunity is afforded of seeing the mo,->t 
wonderful placer gold mining camp the 
world has ever known. 

The voyage down the Yukon, with 
its many picturesque islands, duriig 
which the Arctic Circle is crossed 
and recrossed, is one of unusual in- 
terest. In June and July, and a part 
of August, daylight is practically con- 
tinuing during the twenty-four hour.s, 
and while in the Circle the sun is to be 
seen at midnight for a period of two 
weeks in June. Mining camps and 




MIDNIGHT SUN 

Indian villages are of frequent occur- 
rence. 

The trip up the Tanana river to Fair- 
banks is the most interesting part of 
the river voyage, colossal mountain 
ranges being in sight for the greater 
part of the distanoe, and, at many 
points, a fine view being afforded of 
Mount McKinley, the highest mountain 
in North America. 

On the Yukon below Tanana the in 
terest is maintained until St. Michael 
is reached, at which point the steamer 
is taken for Seattle, an opportunity 
being afforded of visiting Nome, an- 
other of the great camps that have 
made Alaska famous. 

More extended data concerning tour- 
ist travel than can be embodied in 
this booklet can be obtained from the 
pamphlets issued annually by the White 
Pass and Yukon Route, Alaska Build- 
ing Seattle; the Pacific Coast Steam- 
ship company and the Alaska Steam- 
ship company. 



ON YUKON RIVER. 

A route from Fairbanks to the coast 
that is rapidly gaining in popularity 
is by way of the road built by the 
Alaska Road '""n'mmission to Chitina, 
the Interior terminus of the Copper 
River & Northwestern railroad, and 
thence over the railroad to Cordova at 
which point the ocean steamer is 
taken for Seattle. The road to Chitina. 
a distance of 310 miles, under normal 
weather conditions, nialtes a delightful 
automobile trip of three or four days, 
the scenery for almost the entire dis- 
tance being magnificent. By this 
means Seattle ran be reached from 
Fairbanks in shorter time than by any 
other route, good connections making 
the trip possible in ten days. It is 
the only route available in the winter 
time, when comfortable thoroughbrace 
stages, leaving the terminals three 
times a week, usually cover the dis- 
tance between Fairbanks and Chitina 
in seven days, although the trip has 
been made in not much more than half 
this time. 



Fifty-four 



What to Wear 




ITTLE or no extra expen- 
diture need be made for 
clothing by those contem- 
plating coming to Fair- 
banks, for much the same 
apparel is worn here dur- 
ing the entire twelvemonth 
as is customary in most 
of the northern states, and any or all 
of it is to be procured at reasonable 
prices. 

The application of a little common 
sense dictates what clothing is needed 
in summer when it is remembered that 
the thermometer ranges between 60 

and 75 for the greater part of the 
time, but, for the sake of amplification, 
it may be added that Alaskans during 
that period wear no more, nor less 
nor different clothing than those liv- 
ing in the States of Washington. Illi- 
nois or New York. 

Preparation to withstand the colder 
winter months is made in Interior Alas- 
ka to about the same extent as is 
usual in Minnesota or the Dakotas, any 
considerable change from the normal 



being only necessary for those engaged 
in outdoor occupations. Fur coats are 
largely used by those living in town 
but they are b> no means essential, 
warm underclothing and comfortable 
head and foot wear being entirely 
adequate to make the ordinary cloth- 
ing sufficiently coldproof. 

For use on the trail and in other 
outdoor occupations the experience 
gained by Alaskans has been the 
means of evolving modes of dress that 
give a maximum of comfort and free- 
dom of action at slight cost. Com- 
ponent parts of these are rubber shoe 
pacs, parkas, sweaters, fur caps and 
mitts, all of which can be purchased 
here at Outside prices with little more 
than the freight added. 

Women i.'ving in the Interior find 
plenty of uses for pretty dresses, for 
many of the social affairs in Fairbanks 
are conspicuous for the display of 
elegant gowns. The local stores vie 
with each ether in importing these 
at all times of the year, fashion's dic- 
tates being as scrupulously observed 
here as elsewhere. 




Fifty-fi re 



The Fuel Que^ion 




N a mining district where 
deposits are found at con- 
siderable depth or still in 
place, the question next in 
importance to that of the 
richness of the gravel or 
ore is that in regard to 
the means of producing 
the power necessary for extraction and 
milling. The availability and cost of 
this power may determine whether the 
deposits can be worked with bonanza 
profits or must be passed up as use- 
less. Bearing this in mind the pro- 
duction of the Fairbanks district ap- 
pears still more wonderful than is in- 
dicated by the figures in which its out- 
put is stated, for at all times opera- 
tions have had to be conducted under 
excessive power costs. 

Wood has always been, as it is at 
present, the only source of power in 
the Fairbanks district, and it varies 
in cost from $10 to $16 a cord at the 
mines. A cord of wood is considered 



to be the equivalent in the production 
of power to one half ton of soft coal. 
From the hypothesis that wonderful 
success has been obtained under such 
a handicap it may reasonably be ar- 
gued that an immense stimulus will 
be given to operations when the build- 
ing of the railroad will make available 
an excellent grade of lignite coal from 
the Nenana fields at a cost of $6 to $7 
a ton delivered, for this will undoubt- 
edly mean the working of scores of 
quartz mines and an immense area of 
low grade gravels that cannot be made 
to produce profits at the present high 
cost of power. 

Besides affording cheaper means of 
operating the mines availability of a 
good coal supply will lessen consider- 
ably living costs in Fairbanks. It has 
been estimated that the annual sav- 
ing to the average householder will be 
nearly $100, while the cost of heating 
stores and warehouses and the opera 
tion of machinery will be reduced on 
an even greater scale. 




COAL IN SIGHT AT NENANA. 



Fifty^ix 



How Mining Claims Are Acquired 

By Location in Alaska— By John A. Clark, of the Alaska Bar, 

Fairbanks. 




HE mining laws particu- 
larly applicable to Alaska 
have undergone so many 
changes during recent 
years that any compre- 
hensive analysis thereof 
would overly extend this 
article, therefore its scope 
will be strictly limited to the proce- 
dure necessary to be followed to se- 
cure the possession and right of pos- 
session of mining claims in the Terri- 
tory under existing laws. These 
laws are subject to change or repeal 
by Congress at any time, amd by the 
Alaska Legislature at any biennial ses- 
sion held during March, April and 
May of the odd-numbered years. 

Who Can Acquire. 

No distinction is made between citi- 
zens and aliens, except that an alien 
can not secure a patent from the Gov- 
ernment to any mining claim. Any 
person over the age of 21 years may 
locate, hold, and work, or lease, sell, 
mortgage, or otherwise dispose of, min- 
ing claims in the Territory; an alien, 
however, secures no title or ripht ot 
possession as against the Government, 
but his rights are paramount as against 
all persons except the Government of 
the United States. 

A mining location once made and 
perfected in the manner prescribed by 
law entitles the locator thereof or his 
successor in interest to the exclusive 
possession of said property, including 
all surface rights and the right to ex- 
tract therefrom all mineral products, 
as long as he keeps up his annual as- 
sessment work as hereinafter explained. 



Kinds of Mining Claims. 

Mining claims are, roughly speaking, 
divided into two classes: quartz and 
placer. Quartz claims are all of those 
containing veins, lodes, or ledges of 
"rock in place," bearing gold, silver, 
cinnabar, tungsten, lead, tin, copper, 
or other valuable mineral. By "rock 
in place" is meant that the mineral- 
bearing ledges, veins, or lodes are 
still contained between walls of non- 
mineral-bearing rock, and in substan- 
tially the same position as when the 
earth's surface was formed. Placer 
claims are those where by reason of 
glacial action or erosion caused by 
the elements the ledges, veins, or 
lodes have become disintegrated and 
their mineral contents have become 
scattered through the gravels, earth, 
and sand, and are concentrated to a 
greater or less extent in "paystreaks" 
in old creek beds or channels. The 
most common form of placer claims in 
Alaska are gold and stream tin. Pe- 
troleum is also classed as placer and 
located as such. 

Quartz Claims. 

Cl) Number of claims that may be 
located. — No limit is placed upon the 
number of quartz claims that one per- 
son may locate. (2) Dimensions. — 
Quartz claims are limited in length to 
1500 feet along the center of the vein 
or ledge, and their width shall not 
exceed 300 feet on each side of the 
center of the vein or ledge, and the 
end lines must be parallel to each 
other. (3) Power of attorney —The 
number of persons for whom one may 
locate quartz claims under power of 



Fifty-seven. 



attorney, as well as the number of 
claims that may be located by each 
person represented by power of at- 
torney, is unlimited. (4) Acts of lo- 
cation. — (a) There must be a discovery 
within the boundaries of the claim 
of mineral-bearing rock "in place" 
clearly exposed by necessary excava- 
tions and preserved for inspection. 
Point of discovery must be marked 
by substantial post or monument, 
(b) The boundaries and center line 
must be marked by posts or monu- 
ments so that they can be readily 
traced; and all marking of boundaries 
must be completed within 30 days 
after discovery. (c) Recording of 
notice of location. — Notice of location 
which must contain certain specified in- 
formation, must be filed in the office of 
the Recorder of the recording precinct 
In which the property is situate, within 
90 days after the posting of the location 
notice, (d) Annual labor. — On all unpat- 
ented lode or quartz claims one hundred 
dollars' worth of work must be done or 
improvements made during each cal- 
endar year, the first year being reck- 
oned as commencing with January 1 
of the year succeeding the date of 
location. Where contiguous quartz 
claims are worked together, the work 
may be done on one claim, but it 
must be sufficient in value to equal 
one hundred dollars for each location. 
Survey of the claim by a mineral sur- 
veyor, if equal to the assessment work 
required, may be credited as the as- 
sessment work for one year. Within 
90 days after the close of the year 
within which the work was done, an 
affidavit, in form prescribed by law 
and containing certain specified infor- 
mation, must be recorded in the proper 
recording office. After patent is is- 
sued to the claim, no annual labor 
need be performed. For more defi- 
nite particulars relative to the above 
matters, reference is made to section 
2320 Revised Statutes of the United 
States (17 stat. at Large 91) and sec- 
tions 10 to 14 and 19 to 21 of chapter 
10 Session Laws of Alaska for 1915. 



Placer Claims. 



(1) Number of claims that may be 
located. — No person may personally lo- 
cate or cause to be located for himself 
by power of attorney more than two 
placer claims In any one recording 
precinct in any calendar month, but 
may locate or cause to be located 
under power of attorney two claims 
in as many recording precincts as 
his or his agent's abilities may permit. 
Claims so located may be individual 
claims or may be included in and be 
a part of one or two association 
claims. (2) Dimensions. — Individual 
claims are limited to twenty acres and 
shall not exceed 1320 feet in length. 
The ordinary 20 acre claim is 1320 
feet in length and 660 feet in width. 
Association claims are limited to 40 
acres and no association claim shall 
exceed 2640 feet in length. The or- 
dinary association claim of 40 acres 
is 2640 feet in length and 660 feet 
in width, or staked substantially square 
is 1320 feet each way. (3) Powers of 
attorney. — No person can stake for 
more than one person in any one 
recording precinct in any calendar 
month under power of attorney. Powers 
of attorney must be in writing, duly 
executed and acknowledged before an 
officer authorized to administer oaths, 
such as a notary public, clerk of a 
court of record, etc. While the law 
does not expressly so provide, it is 
advisable to have two witnesses to 
the execution of a power of attorney, 
and the power of attorney must be 
recorded in the office of the recorder 
of the precinct wherein the claim or 
claims located thereunder are situate, 
before the notice of location is filed 
for record. (4) Acts of location. — (a) 
There must be a discovery of gold 
witlun the boundaries of the claim 
sufficient to justify an ordinarily pru- 
dent man, not necessarily a skilled 
miner, in prosecuting further work 
thereon, with a reasonable expecta- 
tion of developing a paying mine, (b) 
Notice of location must be posted. 

Fifty-eight 



containing certain specified informa- 
tion, and tiie corners of the claim 
must be so marked with numbered 
stakes or monuments, and the lines 
cut, marked, or blazed, so the bound 
aries can be readily traced, (c) Notice 
of location, containing certain speci- 
fied information, must be filed for 
record in the recorder's oflBce in the 
precinct in which said property is sit- 
uate, within 90 days after discovery 
and posting of notice of location. Fail- 
ure to file such notice of record within 
the time specified is deemed an aban- 
donment of the claim, (d) Annual la- 
bor. — On all unpatented placer claims 
located subsequent to 1 August 1912, 
labor or improvements of the value 
of $100 for eacn 20 acres or fractional 
part thereof contained shall be per- 
formed or made during each calendar 
year, including the year of location. 
Where title to contiguous mining claims 
is vested in the same person or per- 
sons, the annual labor may be done on 
one for the benefit of all, provided the 
total value of the improvements or 
labor equals the sum of $100.00 for 
each 20 acres or fractional part there- 
of included in each claim in the group, 
and further provided that the work 
inures to and is for the benefit of the 
entire area included in such contiguous 
claims so grouped. Survey of the claim 
by mineral surveyor, if equal to the 
assessment work required on the claim 
so surveyed, may be credited as as- 
sessment work for one year. Within 
90 days after the close of the year 
within which the work is done, an 
affidavit in form prescribed by law 
and containing certain specified in- 
formation must be filed in the proper 
rerording office. After patent is issued 
to any claim no annual labor need be 
performed. For more definite infor- 
mation relative to the location of placer 
claims reference may be had to chapter 
10 of the Session Laws of the Alaska 
Legislature for 1915. (e) Value of an- 
nual labor. — Prevailing wages where 
the annual labor is performed governs 
the value thereof, (f) Computation of 



time. — Where the word "year" is used 
in the foregoing article it means "Cal- 
endar year." 

Patents. 

Patents are issued by the Govern- 
ment to quartz and placer mining 
claims In Alaska, but the procedure to 
patent same is regulated by the gen- 
eral land laws of the United States, 
to which reference may be made, a> 
the length of this article precludes 
any analysis thereof. 

Tunnel Sites. 

Timnel sites for prospecting for quartz 
may be made by complying with the 
provisions of chapter 10 of (he Session 
Laws of the Alaska Legislature for 
1915. The length of the tunnel site 
shall not exceed 3000 feet, and the 
ledges disclosed may be held subject 
to the general land laws of the United 
States. Annual assessment work on a 
tunnel site must amount to at least 
$500.00. per annum. 

Mill Sites. 

Mill sites may be located by comply- 
ing with the provisions of chapter 10 
of the Session Laws of the Alaska Leg- 
islature for 1915; the area and extent 
thereof to be governed by the provisions 
of that act, and annual labor to the 
amount of $25.00 shall be performed 
during each calendar year on each 
such mill site. 

No attempt is made in the foregoing 
article to give all the details relative 
to acquiring portions of the public do- 
main of Alaska under the mining laws, 
but it is merely intended to indicate 
to any person interested in acquiring 
such property the amount that may 
be acquired and something of the man 
ner in which a possessory title can be 
secured thereto, as it would be practi- 
cally impossible without giving the 
various laws in full to give further 
details. 

Copies of any particular law passed 
by the Alaska Legislature may be se- 



Fifty-nine 



cured from the Secretary of Alaska, 
whose address is Juneau, Alaska, by the 
payment of a small fee therefor. 

The recording fees charged by the 
various recorders are regulated by the 
department of Justice at Washington. 



D. C, and in eome instances by the 
Legislature, but generally speaking it 
costs approximately $2.50 to record a 
notice of location, and approximately 
the same amount for recording a power 
of attorney. 




"^ 






•S*'"' 









TROOP 1, BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA. 
ENCAMPMENT 1915. 



Siity 



How a Homestead is Acquired 

By A. R. Heilig, of the Alaska Bar, Fairbanks 




HREE HUNDRED AND 
twenty acres, or less, of 
unappropriated public lands 
suitable for agriculture, 
may be settled upon, lo- 
cated and entered as a 
homestead by any person 
qualified to make entries 
under the general homestead laws of 
the United States. 

These qualifications are fully stated 
in Circular No. 414, which can be ob- 
tained free from the General Land of- 
fice at Washington, D. C, or any local 
land office. They are also set forth 
in the Compiled Laws of Alaska, a copy 
of which can be obtained from the Sup- 
erintendent of Public Documents at 
Washington for $1.50. 

Where such land in Alaska has been 
surveyed by the government it may 
be entered as a homestead and final 
proof made in the same manner as in 
the States, in the local land office at 
Fairbanks. In the interior of Alaskn 
but eight townships have been sur- 
veyed. 

A qualified person can. however, settle 
upon unsurveyed land, and make entry 
thereof and after compliance with the 
law secure a patent therefor. In such 
case he must locate the land in a 
rectangular form, by north and south 
lines, not more than one mile in length; 
it cannot be more than half a mile 
along the shore of any navigable wa- 
ter; he must mark his location on the 
ground by permanent monuments at 
each of the four comers, so that the 
boundaries may be readily traced; and 
within ninety days from the date of his 
settlement he must make and record 
a notice of his location in the record- 
Sixly-one 



ing district in which the land is sit 
uated. There are a number of re- 
cording districts in the interior of 
Alaska, in each of which is a town 
or settlement where a recorder appoint- 
ed by the District Court has his of- 
fice, where locations of homesteads may 
be recorded. Fairbanks is the town in 
which the recorder for Fairbanks 
Recording district has his office. 
The record so made must con- 
tain the name of the settler, the date 
of the settlement, and such a descrip- 
tion of the land settled upon by refer- 
ence to some natural object or perma- 
nent monument as will identify the 
same. 

A citizen of the United States may 
commute 160 acres, or less, of his lo- 
ca,tion. after 14 months actual resi- 
dence and cultivation of the required 
amount, at the rate of $1.25 per acre, 
or he may continue his residence and 
cultivation for three years and then 
prove up and secure a patent for the 
whole tract without paying anything fo^- 
the land. 

The requirements for cultivation are 
that the homesteader shall cultivate 
not less than one-sixteenth of the area 
of his location beginning with the 
second year of his settlement, and not 
less than one-eighth of the area begin- 
ning with the third year of his settle- 
ment, and a like amount every year 
thereafter until he makes final proof. 

After giving proper notice at the 
local land office a homesteader is en- 
titled to a leave of absence from his 
land for one or two continuous periods 
not exceeding in the aggregate five 
months in each year after establishing 
his residence thereon. 

If the settler desires to prove up at 



the end of three years, or at any time 
thereafter, and ihe public surveys have 
not been extended over the land located 
by him, he can have the land sur- 
veyed by a deputy U. S. Surveyor, at 
his own expense, and after this survey 
is approved he can proceed to make 
final proof in the same manner as is 
provided for final proof upon surveyed 
public lands in the States. 

Note — On April 3, 1916, the lower 
house of Congress passed a bill reduc- 
ing homesteads in Alaska to 160 acres 
and providing that one who secured a 
homestead in any of the United States 
is not thereby disqualified from secur- 
ing another in Alaska. This bill is 
pending in the senate. 



The value of the fishery products 
of Alaska during 1915 was $19,603,680. 



Tin was produced in 1915 to the value 
of $79,471. Alaska has the only tin 
mines on the continent. 



WATERPOWER is available in Alaska 
in greater aimount than is possessed by 
all of the Pacific coast stales. 



Alaska is a laud whose area is equal 
to one-fifth of the United States, or 
twelve times that of the state of New 
York. 



Alaska's commerce for the year 1915 
was nearly eighty-three millions, an 
increase of more than twelve millions 
over that of 1914. 



Scenic beauty and grandeur not ex- 
celled by any country in the world 
assure a future tourist travel to Al- 
aska of vast proportions. 



Coal fields of greater area are ex- 
posed in Alaska by nature alone than 
are contained in the entire state of 
Pennsylvania, and we know geological- 
ly only about 40 per cent of the area 
of Alaska. 



Sixty-two 



An Invitation Extended 




N endeavor has been made 
in this booklet to set forth 
the conditions prevailing 
in the Fairbanks district 
and the opportunities ex- 
isting for the houieseeker. 
the man of capital seeking 
prolJtable investment and 
the man of enterprise seeking fortune 
All are needed and each will find a 
hearty welcome and a disposition on 
the part of those already here to lend 
a helping hand. There is room for 
many to help explore and develop the 
raining region contiguous to the city 
and to embark in farming and other 
industries. 

There are three routes from Seattle 
to Fairbanks at this time, that by way 
of Cordova and the Copper River rail- 
road being open the year around. This 
means of reaching the Interior costs 
a little more than the summer routes 
by way of Skagway or St. Michael but 
has the advantage of bringing you to 
the district at the very beginning of 
the mining season. 

The cost of a first-class ticket from 
Seattle to Fairbanks by way of Skag- 
way and Dawson, including meals and 
berth, is $135, while by the St. Michael 
route, which takes longer, the rate is 
$10 less. The route by way of Skag- 
way is advocated for passenger traffic 
and that by way of St. Michael for 
freight. Staple groceries and similar 
commodities, and household furniture. 
are shipped to Fairbanks from Seattle. 
by way or St. Michael, at a cost of 
$55 per ton. The rate by way of 
Dawson is $5 higher. 

Those of reasonable intelligence will 
realize that the field for wage-earners 
is no larger in Fairbanks than in 
other towns of its size in the States. 
but the experience of the past has 
shown that most newcomers have been 



able to get makeshift work of some 
kind until able to find work in their 
particular line. Without going into 
details which might be misleading it 
may be stated that the rate of wages 
paid throughout leaves a considerably 
larger balance after living expenses 
are paid than is the rule m the States. 
The government railroad is certain 
to bring in its wake a very consider- 
able increase in industrial activity and 
population, thereby creating larger 
fields of endeavor. New industries will 
come into being with promise of sat- 
isfactory financial returns. Many that 
are possible at this time could be 
enumerated, but, as those interested 
would require circumstantial detail to 
an extent greater than space permits, 
it is deemed advisable that this be 
furnished on application to the secre- 
tary of the Commercial Club. 



ALASKA'S COMMERCE IN 1915 WAS 

Imports $28,017,307 

Exports 54,856,815 

Total $82,874,122 

The total population in 1915 was about 
70.000. which shows a per capita com- 
merce of about $1184 for every man, 
woman and child, white and native. 
That of Great Britain for 1912 was only 
$133 per capita. 



AGRICULTURAL development in Al- 
aska is today a practical reality. It is es- 
timated that there are 100.000 square 
miles of arable lands. This is a great- 
er area than the entire state of Ore- 
gon. 



COPPER or-- and matte, to the value 
of $12,354,163, was produced in Alaska 
in 1915. The present rate of produc- 
tion indicates that this output will be 
almost doubled this year. 



Sixty-three 



Coptirigbl Photo hi F W Shtehr Vaidf: 



